RWBY: Fragment of the Moon
by Alejudis
Summary: Brought to the brink of despair, he had been only moments from death when he was saved by an unlikely source. Stripped from the life he knew and left with nothing but the clothes on his back, he would forge a path filled with his own blood, sweat and tears.
1. Vol I: Chapter 1: Naruto Uzumaki!

**RWBY: Fragment of the Moon**

* * *

A weary sigh escaped his lips as he stared at the cause of all his world's misery. He had done everything he could, and he still failed in preventing her resurrection.

An unnatural calm permeated through the air as the red rays of the moon coated the battlefield. Sasuke turned to look at his partner, his brother in all but blood, and for the first time he would admit that he was glad they could stand together again. Throughout their life, he was the only person who could share his pain. A single, crimson-eye glowed in the darkness while the other glared ominously in preparation for the final battle, the beginning of the end. Without the other, they stood no chance against Kaguya Otsutsuki, who with her great power hung in the air as she gazed upon the new world set before her. Sasuke breathed deeply. Behind him, Naruto's sun-kissed hair swayed in the evening breeze, a mixture of sweat and blood dampening his blonde tresses.

Naruto's blue eyes looked upon the downed figures of his comrades. Bodies of the deceased and living lay scattered amongst a war-torn battlefield, their minds trapped in an eternal genjutsu. Only Sakura and Kakashi had managed to escape, Sasuke's _Susanoo_ protecting them from the _Infinite Tsukuyomi_.

"This chakra, it's on a completely different level."

Sasuke scowled upon seeing Kaguya descend upon the earth. Long white hair fell in waves as the great beauty gazed upon them with the grace of a deity. Two brown horns stuck out from her head while a third eye lay in the center of her forehead. His gaze moving down, Sasuke could discern her wearing a white, high-collared kimono with black, tomoe-shaped designs running down the center and the edges of her gown. All in all, she looked like nobility, but for Sasuke, her appearance was secondary in regards to something much more sinister. Rather, he was more disturbed by the monstrous amount of potent chakra that was emanating from her body, giving him visions of a vast ocean that seemed to have no end. It had instantly set him on edge. Never before had he felt this type of energy, almost suffocating him as she edged closer. Naruto, meanwhile, fared a little better, due to his own powerful chakra from the other tailed beasts.

Kaguya's white, clear eyes stared blankly at the two men, her feet hanging just above the ground. A smile played on her lips. "I see my son has gifted you with our power," she observed.

"You're Kaguya Otsutsuki…" Sasuke stated, matter-of-factly.

"Hagoromo has told you who I am, and yet, neither of you are him nor Hamura." Kaguya pumped chakra into her eyes, the surrounding veins quickly protruding as she activated her _Byakugan_. "I see… so it is Indra and Ashura's spirit that I sense within you. It's been many years since I've last felt their chakra."

"Why are you here, Kaguya? What's your intention?" Kakashi readied himself. He had seen what she had done to Madara's body; coupled with the Sage's warnings, it was highly unlikely she was to be trusted nor did she intend to end this peacefully.

Kaguya paused for a moment. A reflection came off Naruto and Sasuke, two different faces layering over their own. "This world… there is too much violence and destruction. I cannot allow the consequences of both my sons mistakes to damage it any longer," she said.

"I simply want peace."

"Peace? By sealing everyone away and their chakra? Doesn't seem like a peace to me. More like subjugation," Sasuke growled.

"And yet, those who desire peace, also crave power to enforce it. Is that the full capability of humanity, to breed an eternal cycle where one must sacrifice the other in order to achieve their goal? To use fear as a weapon and enforcer who suppresses the weak, creating hatred and jealousy? This hypocrisy has gone on long enough. By subjugating free-will, there will be no more conflict."

"With you holding all the power."

Kaguya scowled. Alas, yet in this age no one could understand the true path to peace. "All chakra came from me, and thus, I intend to take it back. Without chakra, man could truly be equal, and I will make things right again."

Her smile turned cruel.

"I see you do not agree with my plans. The stubbornness of my sons has carried on through the ages. My love for them has clouded my judgement."

Reality began to shift as she said this while hardened bones were slowly emerging from her hands.

"Vanish. Begone from this world."

Sasuke then felt the temperature in the air to have risen dramatically, but what stunned him the most was that he had suddenly found himself falling.

"Sasuke!" Naruto shouted, reaching for his partner. Sasuke quickly performed the necessary hand seals and put out his hand.

 _"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"_

Almost instantly, following Sasuke's command and the sudden burst of chakra came a large cloud of smoke that, as it began to clear, revealed the appearance of a large hawk. Brown feathers covered its body, while there were darker areas along it's back and wings along with its tail. There were also markings of a deeper shade of brown around its eyes as well as red ones along the sides of its beak.

Knowing it's summoner's intentions, without a word the hawk immediately swooped in and caught the alarmed Uchiha on it's back. Acting quickly, it then turned mid-flight and once again dove in to catch Naruto in its claws just moments before he had crashed.

"I'm fine, you idiot! Where's Sakura and Kakashi-sensei?!" Naruto asked, looking around. Reality had changed to a hellish landscape. Lava coated the ground and they now looked to be in some sort of cave. In the distance, he could see a large, active volcano, which towered over everything else.

"They're fine. Kakashi used a scroll as rope and tied it to a kunai. He's got Sakura with him," Sasuke replied, his mind quickly going to work to figure out what just happened before producing multiple conclusions.

"What about Obito!?"

"He's over there." Sasuke nudged his head. One of Obito's hands was impaled to the walls of the cave with a kunai, most likely by Kakashi. "His hand's only held up by a kunai though. If he doesn't wake up soon I doubt he's gonna make it." Sasuke watched as Sakura's headband fell off her head and into the boiling lava below. He grimaced as he watched it melt. _'So this really isn't just a genjutsu…'_

"Naruto, this isn't just some trick. This world's the real thing," Sasuke stated, grimly. Naruto's eyes widened in shock.

"You mean—"

"She just transported us to a different dimension."

Sasuke scowled further. He found his eyes trained once again on the nearly divine being who caused this mess. She had barely moved an inch, unaffected by the intense heat of this dimension. Her white eyes watched them with blank curiosity.

"Naruto, there's something you need to know," Sasuke started, his back turned to him. The tone in his voice was serious, more so than usual, coupled with a dark sense of foreboding. Naruto's ears instantly perked up.

"If either one of us dies, then it's the end, and the end of our world. The Yang chakra the Sage gave you, along with my Yin chakra — it's the only thing that can stop her. We can't fight her and kill her directly, that's impossible. All we can do is seal her." Sasuke looked him in the eye, his Sharingan spinning. "We must not die, understand? Even if it means sacrificing the others."

The revelation struck Naruto hard, almost like the day when Sasuke pierced through his chest with his Chidori. It was a difficult pill to swallow. If it came to it, he would have to sacrifice Sakura and Kakashi in order for the shinobi world to survive. A sacrifice that was too much to bear. Naruto hated the thought of it, truly he did with all his heart and soul, but really what choice did he have? It was a logical stance, as in reality despite what he wanted to believe; both he and Sasuke understood the stakes. What was more alarming for him, however, was how easily Sasuke had taken to it, as if he had truly cut ties with them all and saw them as mere pawns than former comrades. It struck a nerve with him, but for the sake of everyone he pushed the feeling down for the moment. He would be damned if he allowed his emotions to take control and let Kaguya get to his teammates first.

"I… I get it. But just like that time on the bridge, I can't stop myself if my body moves on it's own."

"Hn." Sasuke scoffed, his eyes never leaving Kaguya as he ignored the grim looks from his former teammates. "Just remember what I said."

Understanding the severity of the situation, Sakura couldn't help herself grimace as she cast her eyes down and felt the tears well up. Unknown to him, or possibly due to his own callousness, Sasuke's words had struck her like a knife to the heart. For years, ever since their first day together as a team, she had always been the weak one, always the one who was left behind, and she cursed at her inability. While she was powerful in her own right, Sakura could do little in comparison to her teammates. It wasn't due to her not working hard enough – in fact, it could be said she had put more blood sweat and tears into her skills than anyone on her team. But each time she took a single step – Naruto and Sasuke would just as quickly outclass her and improve with little to no effort, further widening the chasm between them.

"Let's go, Naruto!"

"Right!"

Sakura was suddenly snapped from her thoughts as her eyes followed the two, who now began their assault. Great bursts of power echoed throughout the cave, sending shockwaves of chakra flying past her face.

' _This is... they're incredible!'_ Sakura could only watch with wide eyes as what could only be described as titans of power clashed before her. As she continued to observe the battle, the first thing that crossed her mind was that how could a single shinobi possess so much power, but then she stopped herself when she remembered that it was Naruto and Sasuke, two amazing people who she knew were unstoppable together. Naruto's Sage chakra combined with the Nine-Tails was breathtaking to watch, his chakra bright and warm like a clear summer's day, while Sasuke's imposing _Susanoo_ moved to end this battle quickly, himself an avatar of swift and cruel justice. During the war, the combined strength of the two shinobi were enough to match a reincarnated Madara with the power of the Ten-Tails' chakra, almost defeating him in the process. Now, with everyone else trapped in Kaguya's illusion, both Naruto and Sasuke were their world's last hope, the last line of defence against a tyranny that would destroy their very lives and the shinobi world forever.

Waves of opposing chakra forced themselves against one another as great winds billowed in response to their power. Naruto clenched his teeth and put out his arm as he attempted to stop Kaguya's charge with a _Rasengan_ , utilising the full force of his and Kurama's chakra to stop the god-like being. It would proved to be unfruitful, however, as Naruto would feel himself become gradually overwhelmed in the power struggle. Unlike Madara, Kaguya's power was on a completely different level. As the first user of chakra, Kaguya's was far more potent than anything he had ever encountered, and he understood why in their final battle Hagoromo and Hamura could only manage to seal her. Eventually, feeling himself grow weaker and numbness beginning to seep into his outstretched arm, his own strength was unable to handle much more. Naruto's _Rasengan_ was quickly forced back and finally wavered in the exchange as the rebound effect sent him hurtling into the air, with Sasuke having to shoulder the offensive himself as he made his own attack.

It was all for naught, however, when Kaguya, with a burst of her own power, batted away Sasuke and his _Susanoo_ aside like a simple pest. Exerting even more of her chakra, she quickly dissipated the _Susanoo_ and forced a massive explosion of energy, catapulting Sasuke towards the lava below.

"Sasuke!" Naruto screamed, still suffering the effects of Kaguya's power. 'Damn it, I can't stop!'

A safe distance away, Naruto's clone had managed to grab hold of Sakura, Kakashi, and Obito, and quietly slipped away from the battle with the rest of his team. As she and Kakashi watched the exchange, Obito still unconscious, Sakura couldn't help but find herself shocked at the quick turn of events. She had thought that maybe the two would be able to gang up and overwhelm the goddess, but she had overestimated their abilities. Finding it hard to admit, but Sakura could see that Kaguya appeared to be almost too much for the dynamic duo, with the goddess countering everything the two were throwing at her. She felt a knot form in the pit of her stomach. As desperation and hopelessness slowly began to settle in, Sakura realised the situation was quickly turning grim.

' _No, I can still do this!'_ Sakura gritted her teeth and tightened her fists. If this was the end, then she'd be damned if she was going down without a fight!

* * *

There was movement over the abandoned battlefield, the soft pitter-patter of footsteps tapping against the rocks as a single shinobi raced to his destination. Around him, a vast empty land with no signs of life, everyone he knew being encased in white cocoons as their personalities and individuality were slowly being drained away. Without Kaguya's defeat, they would forever lay trapped under the power of the red moon, its light spread across the world.

When he had arrived, the shinobi bowed slightly, despite him being of the same rank as his colleagues. "Sorry I'm late, Lord First. Were you able to find anything?"

The aforementioned First Hokage, Hashirama, shook his head. "There's no one here, Lord Fourth. All that's left is the lower half of Madara's body."

"I see. So without the upper half, is it safe to assume that the threat of Madara is over? But there's something else, something that unsettles me…"

"Either way, it seems Madara has completed his _Infinite Tsukuyomi_ ," Tobirama cut in. "And apparently, those revived with the Edo Tensei are unaffected. My apologies for cutting you off, Lord Fourth. Please, continue."

Minato nodded his head in thanks. "I was able to cut a part of the God Tree to try to free the people trapped in the genjutsu, but sadly there was no effect. Instead, the tree reacted and provided another layer of protection over itself."

"I've faced a similar reaction as well," Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, added.

"Then there's no other alternative. We need Madara to update us on the situation. While it disgusts me to say, but the _Edo Tensei_ may have some good use after all. If we use his lower body as a catalyst, we can revive him and force him to explain everything," Tobirama stated grimly.

There was an almost negative reaction to his suggestion, but the two other Hokage relented, as there was some logic to his plan. Without Madara, they had no knowledge of the genjutsu or the means to stop it. They maybe had some information from what they had gathered during the war with Akatsuki, but it wasn't enough to put to use. In addition, none of them possessed a _Rinnegan_ , thus they were truly in the deep end without any of the required materials.

"No, brother. I do not support this. To use the _Edo Tensei_ requires a living sacrifice. We will not sacrifice a valuable life from this generation to repair the errors of our time. We will find another way!" Hashirama said, a fire burning in his eyes.

Tobirama frowned, shaking his head. His beloved older brother had always been stubborn to a fault. Whenever life presented him with a choice, he would always choose the one that would benefit those he cared about the most. While Tobirama would admit he himself was more pragmatic, choosing to look into the long-term and improve the lives of the next generation, his brother would always live in the present, never minding the past or the future. It's what set him apart from the rest of the shinobi, and how he was the closest of his time to achieve true peace. Crowds of followers would instantly be drawn to him, and instead of fearing Hashirama, they revered him like a god.

His scowl then turned into a soft smile, evoking a memory of the time when the shinobi of the world stood to follow the leadership of a certain blonde haired individual. That boy…. he was truly a splitting image of his brother. Maybe the Kyūbi's jinchūriki would be the one to achieve his dream?

While momentarily lost in his thoughts, Tobirama was left unprepared when a sudden, large burst of energy spewed from Madara's remains. Feeling the air grow thicker, like the coming of a storm, he could do little to prepare himself as his head snapped to the source, eyes widening in astonishment. What was happening? Did Madara have another fail-safe in case he failed? He looked at Hashirama, who had taken a step back from the corpse and watched as a torrent of energy swirled around it before suddenly gaining form.

"You are truly like my youngest son, Hashirama Senju."

"Y-you must be—"

"My name is Hagoromo. You may know me as the Sage of Six Paths."

There was a stunned silence. The Sage of Six Paths, the father of the ninja world. Staring into a set of eyes that had been held in the same regard as the wielder itself, they could only feel themselves become overcome with a sense of awe.

This was the man who had founded their very way of life. No words could properly describe his sheer contribution to their history, the closest description being the 'God of Shinobi'. He was garbed in a white, full-length kimono with six magatama patterned around a high collar. Beneath the collar, a necklace also made up of six magatama lay around his neck. On his face, a pair of horn-like protrusions extended from either side of his forehead, with something resembling a _Rinnegan_ residing between the two odd appendages. His legs were folded underneath him as he floated above the ground, balanced by the sheer force of his legendary chakra.

Hagoromo had a somber look about him. "Unfortunately, I have not come to bear the brightest news to you all. It seems a great tragedy has occurred, something which I could not have foreseen."

That brought about an alarmed reaction. "What do you mean? What's happened to them, Lord Sage?"

"I fear the worst is upon us. I had felt a shift when I arrived. My mother has killed the ones who had accompanied Naruto and Sasuke. Their resistance and the power I have gifted them has forced her to make a change to her plans. She has now chosen to eliminate them rather than simply steal their chakra."

Minato's eyes widened in shock. That meant… Kakashi and Sakura…

"What about Obito? Is he still alive?"

Hagoromo closed his eyes. A great amount of emotion swirled within him, feelings of loss and grief. Though he did not show it, he could relate with the blonde-haired man, knowing what it was like to lose the ones you love. Maybe it was time to initiate _that_.

"He has also failed against my mother in battle. Naruto and Sasuke are the only ones left, though I fear not for much longer," he sadly revealed.

The news had hit him like a wave. His mind raced as he tried to think of a plan to prevent the inevitable, but ominous conclusion. Not only was he doing this for the world, but also as a father, and he was not going to fail Naruto again. Minato scrunched his face in concentration, focusing on whatever he could think to do to help his son.

"Lord Sage, would there be a way to hide Naruto and his friend from Kaguya for the time being, until they are ready at least?"

Hagoromo had a pensive look as he nodded. "Yes, there is a way to avert this. I will weave the signs for the jutsu, but it will require a vast amount of chakra which I do not have." His eyes narrowed. "There is very little time. I ask you to just do as I say."

* * *

Their battered, bruised bodies throbbed all over. They had been fighting for hours now, and that was without including the two days of non-stop fighting they had during the war. During the battle, there were times when Sasuke had to hold back and control his former friend, whose heart was filled to the brim with rage over losing the ones he had loved the most. If he had not stopped him, then Naruto would have been left to the same fate as the rest of them, dooming everyone to a life without hope.

Slowly, flakes of white snow fell from the sky, blanketing the ground in a white carpet. No longer were they in the hellish dimension Kaguya had sent them to initially. Rather, they were now in the opposite. This new world was filled with vast fields of ice, which peaked with frozen canyons and mountains that covered the land. Thick, grey clouds layered over the sky like a mother protecting her young, shielding the earth from sunlight.

"Naruto… how much chakra do you have left…?" Sasuke panted, his breath coming out in white puffs as he spoke. He was running on fumes, his right eye already having reverted back to it's original dark, onyx color. Naruto didn't fare much better, however, as he looked like he was ready to collapse. But luckily, his _Six Paths Sage Mode_ was still active, the yellow chakra emanating from his body like flickering flames.

"I… can still go on, exhausted as hell… but I ain't done yet! Not after what she's done!" Naruto cried determinedly.

The two teens steadied themselves, forcing their weary bodies to stand upright. Kaguya, still floating above them like a god amongst mortals, watched them with interest as they planned their next move.

"Mother, you need to preserve the chakra you've got for an emergency. I'd advise not to continue engaging them together. You use a huge amount of chakra whenever you change dimensions," Black Zetsu warned, still hidden within the sleeve of her kimono.

Kaguya narrowed her eyes. Her supposed 'son' was correct. While it was not outwardly obvious, she was already beginning to feel the effects of the large drain on her reserves.

Constantly switching dimensions was not something she could do without consequence. Despite being the only person capable of the technique, _Amenominaka_ , rewriting the entire time-space of a world took a huge toll and effort from her. Something that was only possible from the chakra gifted to her by the God Fruit.

"If we don't kill them now then our plans with the _Infinite Tsukuyomi_ will only be interrupted again. These pests are too much of a bothersome to live," Black Zetsu growled viciously.

"I shall eliminate one of them first. After that, it will become much easier," Kaguya said, activating her third eye, the _Rinne-Sharingan_ ,on her forehead.

Reality began to twist once again. In the blink of an eye, what Sasuke had previously saw as a frozen wasteland warped to a completely different dimension. This time, a pink sky hung above while the ground was littered with green, pyramid-like constructs. Cerulean colored hills stood in the distance; it's formation curling to surround them on all sides. But the change in appearance was not the most surprising. Both he and Naruto were forcibly brought to their knees as they felt the pressure of the gravity of this world. It was nigh unbearable.

"My body it's… it's so heavy…what the hell is with this gravity?!" Naruto strained himself to say.

"This is crazy… why would she—" Sasuke stopped. He saw Kaguya in a similar situation of their own, her own otherworldly power unable to fully resist the gravitational pressure of her own dimension.

' _I see, so she's on the same boat as us. But why would she come to this dimension if she were to limit herself as well?'_

Sasuke slowly was able to put the pieces of her plan together though, when his eyes narrowed as he trained his line of sight on her. Despite the gravity, Kaguya had managed to carefully lift both of her arms, palms facing in both their directions.

' _Damn it, with this gravity, we're sitting ducks!'_

"Sasuke! We have to move!"

Ash colored bones began to emerge from the palms of her hand. From her kimono's sleeve, Black Zetsu's smile turned to a mocking grin as his whole being raced with excitement.

"Yes, do it, Mother! Let's finish these guys once and for all!"

Naruto cursed under his breath. He was forcing his body to move as fast as it can. To his dismay, the strain of the battle and his previous fatigue, coupled with the additional strain from the intense gravity, made it rather difficult to do so.

Naruto grimaced. He was not going to die here. He was going to live, to free his friends from the genjutsu and become Hokage, goddamn it. Images began to flash before Naruto's eyes. His parents. Kakashi. Sakura. Obito.

He failed them, and now, until his last breath, he was not going to fail them again. They had entrusted him with their dreams, to live in a world free of violence and hate. As he remembered his promise, the images started to change. Naruto saw himself looking upon his home village, himself wearing a familiar set of robes and headpiece. He looked older, possibly in his mid to late twenties, his hair cut shorter than what it was now. He saw the relaxed faces of the villagers, free from the threat of war and happily living their lives. He saw the Konoha 11, his old friends, having grown older with families of their own. He saw Sasuke, finally having redeemed himself, serving as his right-hand in maintaining balance and order between Konoha and the other shinobi nations. He saw that he had aged again, this time as old as the Third, himself passing on his hat to the future, entrusting them to continue his dream. He finally saw himself on his bed, surrounded by his friends and family, as he quietly closed his eyes with one last, brilliant smile.

' _Heh, that's really something special, huh?'_ He thought with a smile. And wouldn't that be something?

Unfortunately, it was never so simple.

"What the—!? Do you feel that, Naruto!?"

Naruto could only nod his head. He had indeed felt a tug; only it was more like he was being pulled to a specific direction. But there was something more alarming though, which set off the alarm bells in his head.

By the gods that was a lot of chakra.

Kaguya herself felt the same thing. She paused. While she wasted her opportunity, it would also be unwise to ignore the oncoming approach of a seemingly mountainous load of chakra.

"Mother, do you think…?"

"Yes, this is Hagoromo's doing."

Not even having a second to react, a large, black portal suddenly appeared behind the two former teammates. Its jagged edges made it appear like it had shattered reality itself, forcing its way onto the physical plane.

"A space-time technique? What the hell is going on?!" Naruto exclaimed, himself being pulled in. Sasuke gritted his teeth.

"I don't know. But whatever it is, I don't want the luxury of finding out!"

With what little chakra he had left to spare, Sasuke activated his _Sharingan_ and quickly called forth a _Susanoo_. While not having enough to complete a full-bodied one, he was able to summon a partial skeleton with a single, spectral arm, whose claws dug itself deep into the ground as it attempted to hold Sasuke in place.

Naruto, meanwhile, used a pair of chakra arms to anchor himself.

Interestingly, Kaguya remained unaffected.

"They're vulnerable now, Mother!"

Smiling cruelly, Kaguya faced her palms towards the two before she fired her technique.

"Here it comes!"

Naruto watched with trepidation as two ashen-colored bones sailed through the air, each aimed for both of them. The _All-Killing Ash Bones_. This was the technique that had murdered his friends, the certain kill move that, no matter who it hit, would turn them into ash.

' _Damn it, I'm stuck in a blind here!'_ Naruto cursed, having been forced to make a decision. With the gravity still limiting his movement along with the strength of the mysterious space-time technique, he really had no other choice.

Having little time to explain himself, Naruto let go and allowed the darkness to take him.

"Naruto—ungh!"

* * *

Naruto's eyes opened with a jolt. His immediate thoughts were that he could no longer sense Kaguya, which was a relief. Once he felt the blur clear from his eyes and he became more aware of his surroundings, he then noticed that he was now lying in a forest.

"Damn you, stupid idiot…"

Naruto turned his head to the voice. "Sasuke!" Naruto cried as he got to his feet.

"Tsk, guess it's over for us, huh? Well, for me at least…" Sasuke chuckled mournfully, his hands holding on to something on his abdomen. Naruto, though, simply grinned, failing to see what was happening.

"Ah, don't you worry, you cry baby. Kaguya isn't around for now so you'll be just fine after I give you some of my chakra," Naruto said as he stopped and kneeled down to touch Sasuke. He quickly pulled his hand back, like he had been burned, when he saw the part he had just touched turn to dust.

Upon seeing the desolate state of his friend, Naruto's eyes widened dramatically. However, it wasn't until he saw the long, grey rod sticking out of Sasuke's stomach did he feel his heart stand still.

"Sasuke… you were—"

While upon first glance he looked fine, in reality Sasuke was just barely hanging on to life. When Naruto had entered the space-time portal, Sasuke had a lapse in concentration as he tried to save the blonde. This would prove to be his downfall. With his attention divided between saving his friend or facing certain death from Kaguya's _All-Killing Ash Bones,_ in addition to having only a moment to decide, he had acted on instinct and done what he thought was now impossible for him.

"That's why you're an idi—" He paused. "Ah, forget it. It's just like that time in Wave, you getting yourself into trouble with me having to bail you out of it," Sasuke said warmly, a small smile on his face as he was reminded of a much simpler time, even if he himself wasn't as simple.

Sasuke then groaned, his smile quickly vanishing and turning into a frown. He furrowed his brows. Now definitely wasn't the time for talk. He had one last mission to do, after all. With his force of will and his own half of the Sage's chakra, he had managed to slow the progress of decay somewhat, but it was still inevitable. Certified genius that he was, there was nothing he could do or ever could be done. Kaguya Otsutsuki's power was absolute. Sasuke Uchiha was going to die this day; there was no doubt about that.

"Listen, Naruto, there's something I need you to do. I need you to take both of my eyes. Do it quickly. They are one of the only things that can stop Kaguya. Without it, there's nothing in this world that could stop the _Infinite Tsukuyomi_."

Naruto, his mind having been shocked beyond comparison, could only stare dumbly at his dying friend as tears began to leak from his eyes.

"Naruto! Are you listening? You have to do this now! I… I don't have much time left!" Sasuke pleaded, his body beginning to fall apart. His legs were already degrading at a much faster rate than before, the first parts of his body to go.

Snapping out of his stupor, Naruto quickly wiped his eyes before nodding his head.

Moments later, an inhuman scream rang throughout the forest, a voice full of pain and agony that haunted the very hearts of those who heard it. It was the cry of a broken soul who had lived a very misguided life. Blinded by his thirst for revenge, he had lived as a shadow of his former self who, now within moments of his death, realized that his life had taken the wrong path.

When Naruto had finished, a pair of different colored eyes rested in his palm, Sasuke's _Sharingan_ and _Rinnegan_. Blood dripped from his fingers tips as he held them – he was not a medical-nin like Sakura, therefore he had neither prior training nor preparation for this. In addition, he didn't have any anesthetic, so he had to bottle up his emotions when he was performing the procedure, ignoring the pain he knew his friend was going through.

With his other hand, Naruto pulled a small scroll out from a pouch on his hip. He then hesitantly sealed the objects within the scroll before kneeling down to his friend.

"There… it's done," Naruto said softly, almost tenderly. Sasuke, meanwhile, was a mess. His breathing was heavy, and blood poured from where his eyes had been, his eyelids now closed. Sweat also dripped from his brow from the pain.

"T-thanks, Naruto…" Sasuke rasped. Surprisingly, he was feeling lighter now, like a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders. His face began to crack as the fragments faded into the wind.

After a moment of silence, Naruto spoke up. "Why did you save me? I thought you hated me," Naruto had to ask.

Sasuke groaned as he prepared to speak up again. It was getting harder for him to talk, his throat burning from his body's decay. Naruto inched closer to listen. "Because you're an idiot, that's why. If I had been a split second earlier, then maybe… I could've prevented this. But when I saw you get sucked in, I hesitated and that was all Kaguya needed. It's-it's my fault…" he admitted. "Sorry I'm… leaving everything up to you. You're the hope of this world now. Become Hokage and end this cycle of war and death."

Naruto reached down and cradled Sasuke in his arms. He could only watch, with a heavy heart, as Sasuke faded into dust, but not before seeing an extraordinarily radiant smile on Sasuke's face – a genuine, sincere smile unlike anything Naruto had seen before.

"I believe it."

"Sasuke!"

He broke down. Naruto could not stop himself now. Tears of grief fell from his eyes as an ear-splitting roar rocked through his very being, sending the entire forest into a frenzied panic. All manners of nearby wild life turned and bolted in the opposite direction, spooked from the growing demonic presence building within their home. For any humans in the area, they would have been hit with an overwhelming pressure. It was a power so vast and incomprehensible that nothing could have prepared them for it, forcing them to their knees as a burst of energy filled with anger and loss gripped their hearts.

If that was not enough, within the dark recesses and shadows of the trees, creatures of darkness began to move forth, silently drawn to the negativity.

 _ **"Naruto! Calm yourself! If you don't then this whole forest will be destroyed!"**_

Kurama's words fell for naught, as mere words could not stop his container from releasing all his pent-up feelings. Like a dam collapsing on itself, a deep, primal rage filled Naruto's mind with hate, hate for the world, hate for himself, and most importantly, hate for Kaguya, for destroying his life and the lives of those he considered family.

There's no stopping him now.

If there were a place for her in hell, then he'd be damned sure he'd be the one to put her in it.

* * *

"Sorry, this is the best I could do for you guys. After everything that's happened, you deserve this at least."

Naruto kneeled at the foot of a freshly dug grave. Although there had been nothing buried there, it served more as a symbol in memory of his deceased friends. Just like Jiraiya's grave, it was a small monument, with a single rock inscribed with the symbol of Konoha. Sasuke's sword sat on top of the rock, unsheathed as Naruto had decided he would find no use for it during his journey. A fresh collection of carefully selected flowers sat at the front of the grave, having been hand picked by Naruto himself to signify each of his teammates. A rose for Sakura, whose sisterly love and kindness would never be forgotten. An iris for Kakashi, whose loyalty and honor to his village was unmatched. And, finally, a sunflower for Sasuke, who despite his rough and callous personality underlay a genuinely good person, dedicated to doing what he thought was best.

"Sorry, Obito, but I didn't know you that well enough," Naruto began, talking more to himself. "Maybe we can share a bowl of ramen someday."

Taking out a scroll from his pocket, Naruto infused it with a small portion of his chakra before it popped with a small cloud of smoke. As it cleared, Naruto felt another sharp pang strike his heart.

It was a picture of Team 7, back when they had graduated from the Academy. It was simple enough, an official team photo organized by Kakashi to keep a record of as shinobi of Konoha. But for Naruto, it had meant so much more. It was a picture of his family — they were not related, but he had thought of them as his family. People he loved and treated as close as blood. Without them, he would not be the person he was today. As an orphan, he grew up never knowing what it was like to be loved, to feel the love of parents or brothers and sisters. So he had replaced them with his friends, who he knew cared about him all the same. And that was enough.

"Thank you, for everything. Kakashi-sensei, thank you. For always being there for me. You and Iruka-sensei were like the fathers I've never had, and even though you tried so hard to keep all of us together," Naruto made an apologetic grin and rubbed the back of his head, being reminded of a certain Uchiha. "Sometimes we get a few bad eggs in the group."

"Sakura, I may have loved you differently before, but I think I understand what love means now. My feelings evolved into something much more special, and I feel like it's how we became closer. I never knew what it was like to have a sister, or girlfriend, but since meeting you, it didn't matter. You were always there for me, and you always watched my back. And both of us tried to make each other happy no matter what. So thanks… Sakura. I'll always love you." His eyes then shifted slightly to look at the sunflower, his fists tightening.

"You know, I never got the chance to beat some sense into you, for leaving us like that. You know how worried you made all of us?! You were my brother!" Naruto screamed, unable to stop the wetness in his eyes again. "We almost lost you. We were ordered by the village to kill you on sight. I…I wouldn't let that happen. I couldn't. But the path you chose, it was somewhere where I couldn't follow, and you almost left me with no choice," Naruto lamented. He wiped his eyes.

"But it doesn't matter now, right? I'm still alive while you moved on. It's funny; I'm the last one in our family now, just like you had been the last Uchiha. Funny, huh, how things turn out that way, am I right, Sasuke?" Naruto snorted, a sad smile slowly forming on his lips. He then picked himself up and turned his back to the grave, looking up at the sky.

A new day had dawned, now that he mentioned it; Naruto realized that today was October 10. He chuckled mirthlessly, as if he had just heard the punch line of a really bad joke. It seems like Kaguya was not done beating him to the ground just yet, like she was cursing his very existence. Adding to what was already a long list of personal tragedies that had occurred on this day, the deaths of his teammates further desecrated and added to what was, for him, one of the saddest days of his life.

October 10. It was the day when Kurama attacked Konoha. The day his parents died. The day the Nine-Tails was sealed within him after his parents loving sacrifice.

And now, years later, the day that Team 7 died.

A day he'd like to forget, even though it was the day, many years ago, when a certain blonde-haired Uzumaki was born.

There was a reason why Naruto hated his birthday.

"I'll make things right, I promise. And you know me…" Naruto said, clutching his heart. Even though his face didn't show it, inwardly he was holding back a great torrent of emotion, trying to fight back the crippling loneliness that had plagued him for so long.

The scars would haunt him for the rest of his life.

"I never go back on my word. It's my ninja way."

* * *

 **AN: First things first, I put up a poll on my profile in order to get you guys, the readers, to share some of your opinions with me in regards to some plot elements. However, that doesn't mean that the poll will influence the story. Maybe it will sometimes, but I already have most of this story planned out so I'd rather not deviate from my ideas unless someone could suggest better.**

 **Anyways, it's been a while since I've been on this website, so hello and welcome to this little project of mine! And this time I'm back with an RWBY crossover. I've watched up to halfway of Volume 3 at this moment, so excuse me if I miss anything or made a mistake with some characters. I'll definitely finish everything as soon as I can, but to be honest I'd rather hold back on starting Volume 4 until Volume 5 comes out, since then I wouldn't have to wait too long for new content. All in all, it feels good to be back, and I've actually already started on Chapter 3 of this story. Chapter 2 is completed and will be posted when I'm done with Chapter 3 or halfway done with Chapter 4, so I apologise if you guys were expecting something soon. My plans for updating this are that I am at least one or two chapters ahead before I post, so that in case anything happens I at least have a backup or if I made a mistake, I could rectify it as soon as possible in the next chapter. It also helps with keeping my interest with this story, since as you know for those who have been long-term fans of me, I have a commitment problem when it comes to my stories.**

 **So that's it, guys! To those who've read it, thanks for checking out my story, and please check out the poll on my profile or leave your responses in a review!**


	2. Vol I: Chapter 2: A Budding Rose

_Six Months Later_

* * *

With a flick of his wrist the knife dug deep into the Grimm's skull. Blood oozed from the wound as the creature let out a shriek before it collapsed, its body evaporating into a black mist.

"These guys just won't let up, eh Kurama?"

 _" **Hmph, they are pitiful compared to your old enemies. At this rate you won't be needing my chakra at all."**_

"Ah, don't say that. _She's_ still around, I just know it."

There was a dangerous glint in Naruto's eyes as he said that. As much as he tried to forget, he would forever remember the hate and despair that fueled his body for the first few months after his friends' deaths. It reminded him of Sasuke's own path of vengeance, but unlike him, Naruto wasn't the type to go batshit crazy and kill everyone who looked at him wrong. Instead, he had offered his services as a mercenary, accepting any job he could in order to get information about Kaguya and her whereabouts. Didn't matter if it was assassinations or such, he didn't care, as long as it brought him closer to the person who basically ruined his life.

Speaking of which, as soon as Naruto had come to the first village in sight after saying his goodbyes with his little memorial, he had been shocked to find that there were people who were active and walking around, like there wasn't some freaky, super powerful red moon that had all the minds in the world trapped in an illusion. He was even more shocked to find that, upon walking up to the first person that seemed friendly, no one could speak his tongue, nor could he read or understand there's.

Luckily, he had the benefit of a few shadow clones completely solving that problem.

It took him about a month or so to assimilate to things and then, when he did, boy was he in for the shock of his life. Apparently, no one, not even the mountain of books he read ( _Iruka-sensei would be proud_ ), knew anything about the shinobi, and that he was in some place called Remnant.

And, an even bigger shocker, no one knew nor possessed chakra.

It instantly gave him bad vibes.

 _"_ ** _We've been in Remnant for half a year now and there is still no sign of her. With what we've found so far, it's highly unlikely we'll be finding that portal anytime soon to send us home."_  
**

"I know that, fuzzball," Naruto snapped, weaving around another Grimm's paw. He was currently fighting a pack of previously twenty Ursa Minor, having already killed five of them. It was still a touchy subject for him, memories of Sasuke's death instantly coming to mind, and he did not want to be reminded of how he ended up Remnant in the first place. After the discovery that he was possibly no longer in what he could only call his 'home dimension', Naruto had almost had a complete break down, and it had taken him months to accept the fact that he was here now, in Remnant, with a genuine possibility of never going back.

He stabbed a kunai into a Grimm's chest. Even now, it still scares him at how his life changed so quickly.

But at least he wasn't alone.

While it had taken a lot of coaxing and convincing by Kurama, eventually, Naruto's guilt became much easier to control. He would also learn to accept that he would have to make do with what he had now, and that it was impossible to reverse what had happened. The only thing Naruto could do, really the only option he had, was to move forward. Maybe build a new life in this new world. Everyone would've wanted him too, and he wouldn't let them down.

One thing was for sure; he would see this through till the very end.

Because Naruto Uzumaki never gave up.

"I'm gonna finish this. _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_!"

With a burst of his chakra, multiple clones of the blonde shinobi sprung into existence. Each of them had a kunai in hand, while a cruel smile played on their faces. Finding themselves now suddenly outnumbered, the frightened Grimm then took a hesitant step back.

Two Ursa tried to stand firm, however, unlike their other pack members the two instead chose to take a step forward and glare at Naruto with all their might. Primitive growls rumbled in their chests as they refused to back down from the clearly powerful human.

"You made a mistake messing with those kids, you creeps. It's too bad they hired me to deal with you," Naruto growled menacingly. "I just can't let something like that slide, ya know?"

Almost on command the clones then charged at the black beasts, not expecting much resistance as these Ursa Minor were, in reality, simply animals with an extremely heightened sense of blood lust and hatred for humans. Moving quickly, honed from years of hard work and practice, the clones easily dodged the swiping claws and maws of the bear-like Grimm before their knives slashed through the exposed skin and tendons of their targets, with some clones even lopping off limbs such as an arm or a head. Within seconds, nine of the Grimm had been put down, their forms evaporating into a black mist.

Seeing how quickly this monster of a man had killed most of their pack, the remaining Grimm braced themselves for what could only be their deaths.

Naruto, meanwhile, simply grinned.

"So, who's next?"

* * *

"Thank you—thank you, young man! Those creatures deserve what was coming to them. Bless the souls of those children, may they finally rest in peace."

Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "It's nothing, gramps. I can't stand it anyway when kids are involved. Hearing something like that makes my blood boil."

Naruto accepted his reward with thanks and placed it a pouch. He had seen the job on a travel board as he walked past a rather small and quaint farming village. The village itself was located about forty miles outside of Vale, with Huntsman rarely ever being called in save for the routine visit. Since the village remained mostly undisturbed, other than the occasional crop destructions by the surrounding wild life, the presence of anything more than a few guards were deemed as unnecessary by the kingdom.

Recently though, after the disappearance of several of its inhabitants, did the village suffer a tragedy unlike anything it had seen before.

Five children were reported to have escaped from the local orphanage during the night, reports vague on why they would do so, the only conclusive evidence being that they were troublesome kids. Apparently, they had escaped into the woods and were quickly met by a pack of Ursa Minor. The next morning, one of the children had returned to the village, the child missing an arm. He managed to explain what had happened to his fellow orphans to one of the adults before dying from his wounds.

Being an orphan himself, Naruto could not stand idly by and ignore this without making things right. He had taken the job without hesitation and met with the village chief. The chief was an older man, in his late seventies, and he had been the leader of his village for more than four decades now. At first, he had been skeptical due to Naruto's age and appearance, fueled even more by the fact that Naruto wasn't a Huntsman. Nevertheless, it didn't take long for the blonde to convince him otherwise. Rather than trying to persuade him, since the old man was stubborn as hell, Naruto decided to show off some of his skills, and boy did it work. After demonstrating some of his abilities like the _Rasengan_ and his shadow clones, the chief then trusted him enough that his doubts were put to rest.

"Well, I'm gonna be heading off now. Keep yourselves safe next time!" Naruto said as he turned to leave. He waved his goodbyes to the other villagers and once he was out of earshot, he began to commune with his bijū.

"So, where to now, Kurama?"

 _" **Beats me. Guess you're lost now in the road of life,"**_ the fox snickered as his container's former sensei came to mind.

Naruto paused and Kurama noticed his container became quiet for a moment as a sense of nostalgia came over him.

 _" **Uh, sorry, kid. Too soon?"**_

"A little bit."

Kurama grunted before he crossed his arms and snapped his head to the side.

 _" **W-well, it's about time you get over it, anyway! It's n-not healthy to dwell on the past, you know! So— just move on already, idiot!"**_

The link was then cut off as Naruto blinked in surprise. Did… did Kurama just…?

Naruto couldn't help himself. His shoulders shaking, Naruto couldn't resist the urge to laugh at the fox's expense. In addition, Kurama's reaction also had the added effect of 'unintentionally' improving the blonde's mood.

"Man, Kurama! What are you, a school girl?"

He didn't get a reply but he could hear the fox mutter a silent 'idiot' in his mindscape.

His spirit's lifted, Naruto let out one last chuckle before he calmed himself. Truly, though, he had no idea where to go next. If he were to be honest with himself, right now he was drifting with his life. Living it day by day as he searched for answers on how to return home. It wasn't bad, but he really wanted to go back as soon as possible. After all, he was the only one left who could free his friends and his world from their prison. Although, if it was indeed impossible for him to return—

He stopped himself there. No, he definitely will find a way back, no matter what.

Nevertheless, if he were to be honest with himself, Remnant, he would admit, was not an entirely bad place to be. Other than the Grimm problem its people had, this world was relatively peaceful at least. Well, as far as he knew. Other than the White Fang, there were no wars, with the last one having ended around eighty years ago. But what did irk him was the discrimination against the faunus, which was eerily similar to the prejudice he and the other jinchūriki faced. Nothing would ever change in that regard, as people would always find ways to hate each other. Seriously, it was like no matter where he went, there would always be those who looked down upon, or feared, what they would call: 'lesser beings'.

' _Yet this time, it's not like the faunus have some titanic chakra beast sealed inside them. No, they are feared and treated like animals. Hated and looked down upon for something as simple as their appearance.'_ As Naruto saw it, it was unacceptable. In fact, the Uchiha and Hyūga clans were admired for their unique genetic traits, while the Inuzuka's were famed for their use of ninken, they themselves having dog-like features.

 _ **"I suggest we head to Vale, it's the largest city in the region, and it's been a while since we last visited. Maybe this time you could join that famed Academy everyone in this world seems to fawn over."**_

Naruto scowled. "Hell no, I ain't going back to school," he snorted. "We can go to Vale, but I am **not** going to waste my time doing homework and stuff. It was hard enough for me to sit down and relearn everything when we first got here."

 _" **Stop being a stubborn fool. Both of us know that place or the other academies may hold the key to going home. You felt it once— remember?"**_

Kurama was right. It had been nothing more than a whisper, but Naruto had indeed felt something ancient and powerful during his first visit to Vale. While it paled compared to when one first felt the energy of a tailed beast, what concerned him was how the feeling had been brief. Rather than being overwhelming, it felt more like an abrupt welcoming, like it had sensed his arrival and made itself known before disappearing completely, as after that, the feeling never came back again.

And it had come from the direction of Beacon.

Naruto sighed.

"Let's just get to Vale first, okay?"

* * *

Being the prodigy that she was, it was easy to forget that Ruby Rose was still just a 15-year old girl. Within her year, possibly even in her entire school, she was easily its most promising student, with most of her classmates either flocking to her for advice or pouring her with admiration. It was almost too much sometimes, she would admit, but she would take it all in stride and keep a smile on her face.

After all, her family was pretty much set to become Huntsman. Of course, while it had been her life's dream to become a Huntsman, it helped a lot that her family's history would the profession helped inspire her to follow the same path. Her father and mother had been one, and her uncle was one too. In addition, her older sister would be enrolling in, what she thought, was the best Huntsman school in the world, and she'd be dead straight to follow her in the future.

Fortunately, it seemed that luck would be on her side.

In a quiet street located at the heart of Vale's business district, looks of fear and shock were directed towards five figures as they casually strolled into one of the stores. As ordered, rather than walking together as a group, the four of the men flanked a rather attractive young man who stood at the forefront with a smug and confident look on his face. Unlike his accomplices, a set of slanted, dark green eyes glinted with poise, and it was obvious he wore some makeup as black eyeliner traced the man's visible left eye, while his long bangs covered his right eye. As befitting of someone who thought highly of himself, the man was dressed like he had just finished with an important business function, his red-lined white suit and black pants and shoes looking as sleek and fresh like it was recently purchased. To further accentuate his already gentlemanly facade, the man also wore a small grey scarf, black gloves with buckles sleeves, and a small bowler hat with a small feather tucked into its red band that sat atop his bright orange hair.

Looking at the collection of Dust crystals on offer in a glass case, Roman pulled out the cigar that hung on his mouth.

"Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a Dust shop this late," Roman spoke rather calmly. One of his accomplices then pulled out a gun and aimed it at the aged shopkeeper.

The old man had his hands up, frightened. "Please, just take my Lien and leave."

Roman chuckled. "Calm down, we're not here for your money." He turned to his subordinates, the look on his face commanding. "Grab the dust."

Without a word, the group of four went to work.

"Crystals," one of them commanded. He pointed down to the crystals in the glass case before his finger moved up to the shopkeeper. "Move it, old man."

Meanwhile, with her attention drawn to the magazine she was reading along with the music blaring from her headphones, a girl with black hair and silver eyes failed to notice the commotion around her. Despite what other people think, the girl was known for having her own distinct sense of style reminiscent of a certain fairy tale, as the girl wore a red hooded cloak that was fastened to her shoulder by cross-shaped pins. Underneath her cloak was a thick, long-sleeved black blouse with a black waist cincher with red lacing up the front. Accompanying the girl's blouse was a black skirt with red trim, with her personal emblem appearing as a large, silver brooch pinned to a black belt that slung around her hips, with the belt also carrying a pouch and some ammunition. A pair of thick, black stockings and black, red-trimmed combat boots with red soles and laces finished her look, and if one were to describe her appearance, many would say that she had the opposite silhouette of Little Red Riding Hood, a view that was similarly shared with others.

Further adding to that was the fact that Ruby was also very cute.

Since today had been one of her off days, she had decided that a visit to Vale would be a nice change of pace, since things could get bland and repetitive sometimes on Patch. When she arrived at the city, her first stop was at a local Dust store named 'From Dust Till Dawn', the same shop she was currently browsing at.

Spotting Ruby reading at the back along the magazine and comics section, one of Roman's accomplices unsheathed a sword and pointed it at the teen. "Alright kid, put your hands where I can see 'em."

Receiving no reaction, the man grit his teeth. "Hey! I said hands in the air! You want me to rough you up some, huh little girl?" He forcefully pulled on Ruby's shoulder to turn her around.

"Huh?"

The man pointed to his ears, signalling her headphones. Following what he meant, Ruby then took off the accessory.

"Yes?"

"I said, put your hands in the air, before we dispose of you permanently."

Ruby turned her head to the side. "Are you, robbing this store?"

"What does it look like?"

"Oh."

Back with Roman, he was calmly relaxing in the store, leaning over a glass counter as he pondered over his little 'group's' recent activities. Cinder had been especially quiet as of late — the last contact they had being when she had ordered Roman to start collecting Dust for their operation. The request had been strange, but after learning of what it entailed for their future and the massive effect it would have on the people of Vale, he gladly undertook the task.

Besides, it wasn't everyday he was in on an operation this big.

Roman smiled dangerously. And the best part was, not even a single person outside of them had a clue.

"Agh!"

Roman ignored the body flying past him. He sighed. Just great. And everything was going so swimmingly, too. He looked to one of his men who ran up to him before nudging his head.

On command, his henchman nodded before pulling out a rather plain-looking handgun.

"You're gonna get it now, kid!"

"Oh yeah? Try me!"

Activating her Semblance, Ruby felt the rush of her Aura flow through her before the teen shot off like a bullet, kicking her target in the chest. The force of the hit sent the man tumbling in the air before he crashed through the window of the store and into the middle of the street.

"That's what you get, jerk!" Ruby said as she pulled out her weapon. Crescent Rose sprung to life as the weapon began to unfold from its inactive state, forming into an extremely large and highly customized scythe.

Ruby smiled as she hoisted the oversized scythe onto her shoulders. To others, Crescent Rose may have looked heavy, the weapon easily standing taller than its wielder, but it did little to deter Ruby from twirling it around her body with expert ease despite her smaller stature.

While she was by no means a scythe master, she had her Uncle Qrow to attest to that, she was still no slouch when it came to her favorite weapon.

Seeing how this little girl manhandled one of his men, Roman curled his lip in disdain. He was definitely not amused. How could these thugs lose to a kid? For goodness sake, this was what he got after paying good money for them?

"Okay… get her."

Sensing their boss' displeasure, the rest of the thugs quickly rushed outside to subdue the girl who had put a dent in their plans. Their weapons drawn, three were armed with swords while the last one, the same one who had crashed into the street, held an automatic machine gun.

One of the sword-wielding thugs attempted to cut into Ruby, but she easily dodged the strike as she dug the blade of her scythe into the ground before pushing against her weapon, allowing her to lift her body above her opponent's reach. As she gained momentum, Ruby began to twirl in the air and performed two full body spins before smacking her foot against the thug's face, knocking him out.

As Ruby sent the man flying, she then did another twirl before she flipped and landed on the ground with her weapon behind her. Seeing two more thugs rush to her, she put her finger on the trigger on Crescent Rose's handle and fired.

"Ugh!" The force of the shot sent Ruby and Crescent Rose into a frenzy, she and her weapon spinning before Crescent Rose smashed itself into one of the thugs, sending him into a wall.

Undeterred by how quickly Ruby made short work of his comrade, the other thug continued to try to strike down the little red girl, but Ruby simply brought the blunt end of Crescent Rose down upon the poor criminal. The man could only gasp as he suddenly found himself lying on the ground, his body pinned by something heavy, and his vision fading after being smacked hard by the oversized scythe in the abdomen.

"That takes care of them," Ruby said, failing to notice that the last of Roman's thugs had managed to sneak behind her. He brought his machine gun up, ready to unload onto the unsuspecting girl.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

The thug then felt a fist smash into his face.

"Huh?" Ruby blinked, turning to look at the sound. Instead of what she thought was a Huntsman; she saw a tall, blonde-haired teen roughly a few years older than her stand above the downed criminal.

" _And_ that takes care of him." Naruto grinned, amused at his own joke. "You okay, little lady?"

"U-um, yeah." Ruby blushed. She wasn't used to people calling her that.

While the two teens relished in their victory, Roman could only look at his accomplices, rolling his eyes in annoyance. Seriously? That just happened? He could feel a headache coming on. "You guys were worth every cent. Truly, you were," he finally said, sarcasm laced in his tone. Roman took the cigar out of his mouth and blew one last puff of smoke.

"Well, Red, I think we can all say it's been an eventful evening. And as much as I'd love to stick around, I'm afraid this…" he brought his cane up and aimed it at Ruby. "Is where we part ways."

"Look out!"

Naruto dashed to push Ruby out of the way. Having sensed the danger beforehand, they both narrowly avoided Roman's explosive as it blew up the section of the street where Ruby had been standing. With his eyes widening slightly, Roman was surprised at the speed the blonde had displayed.

' _He's fast, must be his Semblance, but no time to think about that now.'_ Roman thought as he made his getaway.

Picking themselves up from the ground, Naruto and Ruby's eyes returned to the spot where they had seen Roman. Shocked to find he was no longer there, their eyes quickly darted around as they tried to find the slippery criminal.

"There!" Naruto cried, his finger pointing at the man who was now three-fourths up a ladder along the side of a building nearby. The sounds of sirens could be heard in the background, the two of them figuring that the police were on their way. A bit late, he would admit.

"You okay if I go after him?" Ruby asked the old shopkeeper, who had stepped outside to witness the commotion. The old man could only mutter a frightened "Yes" before Ruby took off, Naruto in tow.

Once Roman had made it to the roof, he only had a few seconds to make it to the other side before the two teens had managed to catch up to him.

"Hey, get back here!" Naruto shouted as he pulled out a kunai. Roman stopped, his back turned to them. He began muttering in a hushed voice.

"You guys are persistent. Annoyingly so." He frowned.

"Yeah, well, I don't give up easy," Naruto snapped back.

"Indeed," was Roman's own reply before a Bullhead burst into view, having flown up from Roman's side of the building.

As the side door to the VTOL opened, Roman jumped into the plane and quickly climbed in.

"End of the line, kids!" Roman cried with a cool smirk on his face. Digging into his pocket, he then pulled out a red crystal before tossing it back to the rooftop and aiming at it with his cane.

As the crystal scrambled along their feet, both Ruby and Naruto realized what Roman had in store for them.

"Oh, shi—" Naruto said before he saw a flash of yellow appear in front of him.

His shot hitting the mark, Roman felt pleased with himself when he saw an explosion engulf the rooftop. Knowing that that was the end of them, and that there was no way that those two could've survived the blast from point blank range, Roman was about to take a seat before he scowled when he saw the smoke began to clear out.

Instead of a display of scrambled weapons and gore, in its place Roman saw another blonde-haired figure who had shielded the teens from the explosion with some sort of protective energy shield. The figure had been a strikingly beautiful middle-aged woman who, despite her age, had a very curvaceous and youthful figure. Light-blonde hair was tied back in a bun with a curl hanging down the right side of her face. The woman wore a white, long-sleeved pleated top with a wide keyhole neckline that exposed some of her cleavage and a black, high-waisted pencil skirt with bronze buttons and black-brown stockings. A black cape hung on her shoulders — the inside of it being purple, and the cut of the cape stylized in a way that the tail end finished in flames and arrows, with a row of diamond-shaped bronze beads on the back. Above the line of beads appeared an emblem of a tiara, which looked to be a personal symbol.

Bright green eyes that matched her earrings and the pendant on her collar stared calmly at the Bullhead as Glynda adjusted her glasses. To her relief, she had arrived just in time to prevent what most likely would've been a fiery end to these children. Opting not to waste another second, Glynda brought her hand back before swiping it across her body, unleashing flashes of purple light that struck the hovering VTOL.

"Ah!" Roman cried as he was quickly losing his balance aboard the plane. That blonde-haired witch was going to make this plane crash! Roman growled as he forced his way through the cockpit.

Upon seeing the pilot, Roman was slightly surprised to see the person who had been piloting the Bullhead. Speak of the devil and she'll appear, right? He pushed those thoughts aside for now.

"We've got a Huntress!" Roman had to shout above the various beeps and blaring sounds warning the pilot that the Bullhead couldn't take much more punishment. Handing the VTOL's control lever over to him, the pilot then hastily stood and made her way to the opening on the side of the plane.

Back with Glynda, she then used her Dust to form a miniature storm cloud that began to hail shards of ice at the Bullhead. Her eyes narrowed, however, when she saw a shadowed figure appear where Roman had stood. Her face was obscured, but Glynda could make out a fiery red dress in the darkness.

' _Who could that be…?'_ Glyda thought before she had to shield herself from what was a blast of fire. Sparks flew across her shield with some of it landing on the ground around her.

Seeing the area she was standing on suddenly start to light up, Glynda realized that she only had a split second to react. With no other choice, Glynda was forced onto the defensive as she quickly jumped out of the way and barely avoided what was a miniature explosion. Whoever she was, Glynda could tell her opponent was powerful, no doubt about that.

Having been standing in the background this whole time, Naruto's fists tightened as he grit his teeth. Clearly, he could see, that Roman and his new companion were going to get away. Seeing no other choice, his hands moved into a familiar hand-sign.

" _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_

As he summoned his clones, each of them coming into existence in a puff of smoke, Naruto immediately grabbed one of the clones legs with the others following suit.

"Alright guys! Grab a hold of that thing and don't let go!" Naruto ordered as he began to twirl his clone around, his legs now dangling in front of him. As more of his copies joined him, the clones then began to form a chain as they linked themselves together, acting as rope in order to stop the Bullhead from flying off.

When they were ready, the clones then grabbed onto the wing of the Bullhead, holding it in place.

Seeing the spectacle before them, all those who were present couldn't help but widen their eyes in astonishment. This boy… could make copies of himself? Not only that, but they looked to be corporeal. But that wasn't the most shocking thing. Instead, they were surprised at the sheer number of clones the blonde had made. Right now, the boy had about twenty or so of them under his command, almost like a small army, and when he had summoned them he didn't even appear fazed. And what was that shout? Did he have to use a command in order to use his Semblance? So many questions, but one thing was for sure, this boy's potential was limitless. What kind of overpowered ability is that where one person had the potential to possibly create an entire army?

In the shadows, Cinder smirked. The blonde had definitely caught her interest.

 _She_ would like to hear about this, as well. Maybe Cinder could convert him over to their side, where he would be an extremely valuable commodity.

"Roman, we're leaving. I've seen enough," Cinder said as she put her arms out to her sides. She took a moment to concentrate her energy before releasing it into one single, extremely powerful blast of flames.

"Watch out!" the clones closest to the Bullhead shouted before popping out of existence, struck by Cinder's attack. With nothing left to hold on to, the rest of the clones then began to fall to the street below as Naruto was forced to let go lest he be pulled along with them.

Feelings his clones' memories return to him, Naruto and the other two were then forced to move out of the way when Cinder summoned another set of explosions to try to finish them off.

"Damn it," Naruto cursed, looking up to see the Bullhead fly away. If he could, he would send a _Rasenshuriken_ to blow their ass to smithereens. Unfortunately, that would be a really, really bad idea, and be more trouble than its worth.

Besides, it wasn't everyday in Remnant when someone just casually threw around nukes like it was out of fashion.

* * *

"I hope you realize that both of your actions tonight will not be taken lightly, young man, young lady," Glynda said as she paced around the room, looking disapprovingly at both Naruto and Ruby.

"Psst, hey. Name's Naruto Uzumaki. Nice to meet ya," Naruto whispered as he blocked one side of his mouth, the side where Glynda had walked past. Ruby giggled at his antics.

"And mine's Ruby, Ruby Rose," Ruby said, doing the exact same thing as Naruto.

Seeing what they were doing, Glynda smacked Naruto and Ruby on the head with her riding crop. A lump formed on the spot where they had been hit as both began nursing the bump comically. "As I was saying, you put yourselves and others in great danger."

"But they started it!"

Naruto felt another sense of nostalgia hit him. This lady was just like Baa-chan, even boobs and all, but sadly his surrogate mother was a league above this woman when it came to sexiness.

Not that that was a bad thing. Lady Tsunade, after all, was sexy as hell.

"If it were up to me, then you would be sent home, with a pat on the back," Ruby beamed brightly. "And a slap on the wrist." She flinched when the riding crop almost struck her again. Man was that thing evil.

"But, there is someone her who would like to meet you," Glynda finished. She was now standing in front of the doorway. She stepped out of the way as another figure walked into the room, carrying a plate of cookies and a mug.

"Ruby Rose, Naruto Uzumaki."

A man, who also looked to be middle-aged, appeared before them as he leaned over the table to look at them closely. In contrast to Glynda, who had a seemingly perpetual stern expression on her face at all times, this man had an air of mystery about him. On his head lay a bed of tousled, silver hair and brown eyes. He had a light complexion and sharp facial features, and interestingly he also had noticeable black eyebrows, as if the man had dyed his hair in the past and was a natural ravenette. The man wore a pair of shaded glass spectacles and a small, purple, cross-shaped pin hung on the cowl around his neck, while his outfit mainly consisted of an unzipped black suit over a buttoned vest and green shirt. Black trouser shoes and long dark-green pants finished his appearance. In addition, the man seemed to sport a cane, but as he walked in both Naruto and Ruby noticed that he didn't have any visible issues with mobility, figuring then that it might just be an accessory.

Ozpin took a good long look of both of them closely. "You," he addressed Ruby. "Have silver eyes," he observed, before he switched over to Naruto. "And you, have marks that look like whiskers, like a fox. _Maybe even one with nine tails?_ "

The last part had come like a whisper, almost otherworldly actually, and Naruto wasn't sure if it had come out of this man's mouth. Either way, Naruto had picked it up quite easily and simply narrowed his eyes, not showing much more of a reaction. If he did, then that would be very bad news, and possibly confirm whatever he, or whoever was watching, was thinking. Did this guy know?

"Umm—?"

"So," Ozpin interrupted. "Where did you learn to do this?" Ozpin asked, head nudging to the screen Glynda was holding. Videos of the fight from earlier replayed on the screen.

"Uh… S-Signal Academy."

"Taught by a Huntsman called Jiraiya."

Ozpin raised an eyebrow. Jiraiya? Never heard of that name before.

"And who is Jiraiya? Pardon me for asking, but I've never heard of him before."

"He's my godfather." Naruto was prepared for questions like this. "But he died when I was fifteen. He thought me everything that I knew."

"I see, and where did he train?"

"He learned most of his skills outside the Kingdoms. He never went to a formal Academy, was mainly self taught and apprenticed by some old Huntsman who he never told me his name."

"A Huntsman who had never attended an Academy? Is that even possible?" Glynda asked, almost dubious to the blonde's claims. Ozpin put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"While it is exceedingly rare, yes, there are cases when this happens. Normally, going through a formal education and then attending one of the Academies is the best and most common way of becoming a Huntsman. However, there are special cases when people whom, rather than attending formal schooling, choose instead to be apprenticed to an active Huntsman and learn their skills from them. While unorthodox, there is nothing that takes away from the fact that those who choose this path are still eligible to become full-fledged Huntsman like you and me."

Glynda nodded her head. "I see, then I'm sorry for doubting you, Mr Uzumaki."

Naruto waved it off. "Nah, it's fine. I'm not surprised people would think the same as you do."

"But why were you taught by your godfather, what happened to your parents?" Ozpin questioned further.

A pained look came across Naruto's face. "I… I don't want to talk about that," Naruto said, looking away. Ozpin took that as the sign not to question further.

He closed his eyes. "I apologize, my boy. I did not mean to bring up bad memories."

Once again, Naruto shook his head, but this time he smiled. "It's okay, I'm at peace with it. I know they're in a better place, and I know that they love me. That's all I need."

Neither of them asked anything further from the blonde. In fact, a small smile came on Ruby, Glynda, and Ozpin's faces. This boy, the way he had answered Ozpin's question was enough. Enough that it gave them an insight as to who really was Naruto Uzumaki. An enigma, that's what, but also the type of person who doesn't let the tragedies of his life hold him down. Even if the world was against him, Naruto was someone who would forge ahead without looking back.

"I'm glad you think that way, Mr Uzumaki," Ozpin said, patting his shoulder as he moved on to Ruby. "Now, you, Miss Rose. Signal Academy thought you how to handle one of the most dangerous weapons ever designed?"

"Well, one teacher in particular."

"I see," Ozpin said, setting down his plate of cookies. Both Naruto and Ruby could smell the sweet aroma of freshly baked goods as they salivated and looked at the treats hungrily.

Ruby took one, followed by Naruto. Soon, they were competing with each other as to who would have the most while protecting their own.

"It's just that I've only seen one other scythe wielder of that skill before," Ozpin interjected. "A dusty old crow?"

"Oh! Dashmauncle," Ruby replied, mouth full of cookies. Ozpin couldn't quite understand.

She swallowed the treats and wiped her mouth. "Sorry, haha. That's my Uncle Qrow! He was a teacher at Signal, and I was complete garbage before he took me under his wing. And now, I'm just awesome!" Ruby grinned.

Ozpin smiled. "And so I've noticed. So tell me, what is an adorable girl such as yourself doing at a school that is designed to train warriors?" he asked, taking a seat across from her.

"Well," Ruby had a firm look in her eyes. "I want to be a Huntress," she replied determinedly.

"So you want to slay monsters?"

"Yeah! I only have two more years of training left at Signal, and then I'm going to apply to Beacon! You see, my sister's starting there this year, and she's trying to become a Huntress, and I'm trying to become a Huntress 'cause I wanna help people. My parents always taught us to help others, so I thought, 'Hey, I might as well make a career out of it'. I mean the police are all right, but Huntsman and Huntresses-are-just-somuchmoreromanticandexciting,cool,andreally,gosh, you know?!" Ruby said breathlessly, her words jumbling up, especially as she grew more excited and hyperactive. Glynda and Naruto looked at her with a concerned expression.

Ozpin though, simply remained smiling.

"Do you know who I am?" he finally asked.

Ruby nodded her head. "You're Prof. Ozpin. The Headmaster of Beacon." That seemed to make Ozpin more amused.

"Hello," he said.

"Nice to meet you," Ruby replied.

Ozpin leaned forward. "You want to come to my school?" He had a fake scowl on his face.

"More than anything!"

"And what about you, Naruto?" Ozpin asked, looking at the blonde expectantly.

 _" **Now's your chance, kid."**_

" _I know, I know, geez."_

Naruto noticed that Ruby had an extremely cute look on her face as he pondered over it, as if she was internally begging for him to come. Her eyes were big and bright, and she had her hands cupped together as if she were praying, pleading to whatever god was listening to make him come to Beacon. Naruto blushed. She really wanted him to join her that much, huh? And geez, those puppy eyes were dangerous! Especially coming from a cute girl like Ruby. You could even classify them as a weapon. Feeling like now he now had no other choice, the blonde sighed before shrugging his shoulders.

"I wouldn't mind."

Ozpin looked at Glynda, who simply rolled her eyes and turned her head away with an "Hmph".

"Well okay," Ozpin said, smiling the whole time, charmed by the boundless energy and cheerfulness of one Ruby Rose. Naruto, nonetheless, had a huge grin grow on his face as he gave her a thumbs up.

It surely was going to be an interesting year at Beacon.

* * *

Cinder stepped into the barren wasteland of her Lady's domain. Looking around, the familiar backdrop of a rocky terrain with enormous purple crystals sprouting from the ground was now a common sight for her, having grown used to this land due to her frequent visits. Her gaze moving up, she wasn't surprised to find that the sky was still stained a deep red, as it had always been, and that around her Grimm continued to spawn from various pools of a viscous, tar-like substance on the ground.

"Cinder, what news do you bring?" a dark voice came as Cinder instantly went on her knee.

"My Lady, I bring news to you that I have found someone who could potentially aid us in our mission," Cinder said, not daring to look at her Lady lest she be allowed to.

The woman in question stepped forward. Like a corpse, Salem's skin's was of a deathly pallor, covered with tortuous, deep red and purple veins that ran up her arms and face. When one saw her hair, unlike Cinder's, Salem's could only be described as being as white as snow, with her hair tied into a bun with six offshoots from which various ornaments are suspended. The sclera of Salem's eyes were jet black and her irises glowed red, while on her face, a black diamond-shaped marking lay in the center of her forehead. In contrast to her complexion, the woman wore a very long black robe with red designs resembling eyes, with a ring resembling some sort of insect resting on her right index finger.

"Tell me, who is this person?" Salem asked, intrigued as to how one person had managed to catch Cinder's utmost interest. He must be one special individual indeed.

"I was not able to catch his name, but I was able to witness his abilities," Cinder explained, still looking down. "He was a blonde man with whisker marks on his face, however, what I found to be useful was that the man had the ability to replicate himself tenfold, with the possibility that he is able to do this on a much greater scale. In addition, the clones acted as if they were living beings, able to interact with their surroundings and act as foot soldiers."

"Interesting, and what else did you notice about this man?" Salem further pressed.

Cinder then remembered the strange phrase he heard the blonde mutter before his clones came to life.

"He also said something, I believe it was ' _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_ '."

That brought a reaction from her Lady.

"Cinder, you will not speak of this to anyone else, understand?" Salem instructed, harshly.

Cinder nodded her head, hiding her surprise well. "Of course, my Lady. And my Lady, will you inform—?"

"No, _he_ doesn't need to know yet. This is a matter that we will be dealing with ourselves."

* * *

 **Author's Note: (18 April 2017)**

 **First off you guys, you are all amazing! You have no idea how much your support means to me, and how it keeps my drive going to finish this! 27 reviews for the first chapter and 120 favorites and 191 alerts. Not only that, but the reviews were well written and informative for me! The response has been breathtaking and I cannot thank you enough.**

 **A lot of people were asking about character power level in the reviews. For the sake of this fic, I will not be answering most of those questions _as of yet_ as some of them are important for future parts of the story. I won't name which ones, but there's a reason why I did those things in the beginning, you'll only have to stay tuned for a few more chapters before I reveal why.**

 **What I will reveal, though, is that Naruto is indeed powerful, especially being in the RWBY world. Although I will not make him god-like.**

 **I apologize if my writing was off for some people. Sorry for disappointing anyone, but even now and until the end I will try to get better as I go. I normally edit my stuff on my own, but if you guys think I need a beta reader, then leave me a comment and I'll try to look into it as soon as possible.**

 **I also apologize for releasing this later than what most of you expected. I planned to release this about a week or so earlier but Chapter 3 has been one hell of a write, basically comprising content for TWO chapters in one. Also, I procrastinate a lot, and I like to take my time with this and do what I want without stressing myself too much. That is the way I do things, unfortunately, and it helps keeps me interested and doesn't burn me out. As promised, I've already begun on Chapter 4 which will hopefully be finished within two weeks.**

 **Also, the poll on my profile has been taken down. For those who wanted to know or who didn't know, the top 3 choices were Blake, Ruby, and Pyrrha for the pairing, all in that order. Not that it will do much, as I mentioned before the pairings have already been set and I only wanted to know your opinions.**

 **Finally, thanks again for all your support, and please remember to leave your thoughts and opinions in a review or PM me directly. I am happy to answer any of your questions as long as it doesn't reveal too much. If there's more stuff for me to mention, or if people have any other queries, then I will update this Author's Note within the next few days.**

 **Have a good night everybody!**

* * *

 **AN2: (19 April 2017)**

 **So I re-uploaded the chapter since there were some errors that I forgot to fix. To be fair as well, it was late at night here where I live so I just uploaded the chapter without going through it. I added a description of Ruby's appearance which isn't too much, but otherwise there have been no changes.**


	3. Vol I: Chapter 3: Welcome to the New Era

_Naruto stood alone— his body couldn't move, as visions of a past that haunted him for many sleepless nights came to life._

 _Around him, everything was white— not a single other color existed in the room he was in. Shifting his eyes around, Naruto could make out figures, their faces blank without a single definition, but despite the lack of any noticeable features he could recognize them still. After all, who else could they be except for his friends, the ones he had grown up with?_

 _And the same ones he had selfishly left behind._

 _Averting his gaze away, Naruto wouldn't dare to have the guts to look at them, the guilt being too much. Except, despite him looking away, he could feel a lump forming in his throat as he sensed their stares, empty and full of contempt. It was like they were trying to burn holes into his very soul, twisting and manipulating his feelings in an attempt to make him a shell of himself. A husk of emptiness and loneliness deprived of love and warmth._

" _You failed us!"  
_

" _You left us!"_

"You abandoned us to die!"

" _No, stop…" Naruto groaned, scrunching his face as their voices all spoke as one. A sick feeling came to him, like something unnatural and malevolent. Without warning, the air suddenly became thick with it._

 _Their hate, their anger, their sense of betrayal…._

 _It was almost overwhelming._

" _I'm—"_

" _Why didn't you stop her, Naruto?"_

" _Aren't you the Child of Prophecy, the one to bring peace?"_

 _Naruto tried to shake his head. "I didn't mean to come here! It wasn't my choice!"  
_

" _Liar! You had a choice!"_

" _You could've stayed, instead you ran away!"_

" _Why didn't you die for us, like Sasuke did?!"_

" _Because I had a choice!" Naruto cried. "Sasuke didn't have one, and I chose to live!"_

" _You're pathetic, you're scum!"_

" _Traitor! Weakling!"  
_

" _Why don't you rot in hell?"_

 _The figures moved forward, their hands reaching for the blonde._

" _Get away from me!" he exclaimed, swiping an arm at them. He could feel his eyes turning red as he began to draw upon Kurama's chakra._

 _Remembering where he was, however, made him put a stop to that._

" **Good work, Naruto."**

 _Kurama's booming voice echoed throughout the room. Rather than flinching in fear, Naruto instead felt a strange, but comforting sense of warmth that had replaced the previously hostile and demonic presence that was once associated with Kurama. While it had taken time, through their struggles together, the war had forced the two of them to come to an understanding. And when they did, neither of them had any regrets._

 _After all, right now, both of them were the only significant figures they had left in their lives._

 _With renewed vigor, Naruto was snapped out of his trance as a heavy scowl formed on his face, his lips contorting into a vicious snarl._

" _Don't mess with me, ever again. Get out!"_

 _At once, and almost as if the mere presence of the fox had commanded them to, the blank figures began to disperse, shimmering away as they faded into the background. As their forms filtered away, Naruto felt his chest become lighter, and he was filled with a sense of relief._

" _Well that was fun…"_

" **Just don't get too worked up over it."**

 _Naruto deflated slightly, a sheepish smile curling onto his lips. "Yeah, yeah…" he said, before the world around him faded in a bright light._

* * *

He awoke to a soft pair of hands roughly shaking his shoulder.

"Naruto. Naruto, wake up!"

Blinking the sleep out of his eyes, there was little that could hold back the satisfying yawn that escaped his mouth.

"How long was I out?"

"Couple of minutes, but we're getting close now!" Ruby said as she jumped excitedly.

Naruto then felt a fist pound into his shoulder. Looking up lazily, his eyes met a mane of long blonde hair before they were greeted by a playful smirk. "Had a nice cat nap, Whiskers?"

Her boundless energy seemed to energize him. As if she were coaxing him, Naruto simply smiled back.

"I wouldn't say it was the best, but I did wake up to a nice view."

The girl in question grinned even wider. So this guy liked to play, huh? Using the opportunity to further tease her fellow blonde, Yang's purple eyes glinted with mischief as she made sure to give Naruto a better view of her babies as she folded her arms underneath her bust. "So you do like what you see?"

And indeed he did, as it should be with someone as 'gifted' as Yang Xiao Long. For the short time that he knew her, he had a feeling that Yang was the type of person who took great pride in herself and her figure. Like a mini-Tsunade, the attractive blonde was gifted with an impressive set of 'assets' that was only matched by her exuberant personality.

Naruto blushed. "A-as I said, Yang, it isn't bad," he stammered, snapping his head away to avoid the teasing grin plastered on her face.

It didn't help that her choice of clothing only made it more prominent. In fact, you could say that she had chosen her clothes for _exactly_ that very reason. Dressed in a tan jacket that was loose on the top, golden brown piping lined the edges of the jacket as it finished with short, puffy sleeves that had black cuffs and two gold buttons attached. Underneath this, Yang wore a low cut, yellow crop top that exposed her cleavage, with her signature emblem stitched on the left breast in black along with a pair of black mini-shorts. The shorts were accompanied with a brown belt with a pleated brown piece of material covering her from hip to hip attached to the rear of her belt, another copy of her emblem emblazoned on the right-most pleat in gold. Underneath the pleat was a longer, white, asymmetrical piece of material that reached to her knee on the right side. Following that, Yang also wore a pair of brown, knee high boots with orange, over the knee socks, with the right sock being pushed down to below the knee. A gray bandana could also be seen tied around her left knee, before her outfit finished with an orange infinity scarf around her neck while she also wore black, fingerless gloves.

Seeing Naruto's increasingly flustered expression, Yang couldn't help herself. "Oh really? You know, you can touch them if you want. All you have to do is ask," she purred, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

Ruby's face grew as red as her name. "Yaaaaaangggg!"

Naruto, in turn, started to feel blood run down his nose as numerous thoughts swirled in his head, with a part of him contemplating on taking up her offer while the other persuading him to simply make a break from all the craziness. When Ruby had introduced her sister to him, he definitely wasn't expecting this.

He was stopped, however, when Yang caught him by the collar. Knowing not to push his buttons further, lest she make a complete fool out of herself and make him think she was a creep, Yang gave him a rather hard pat on the back and laughed. "I'm just messing with ya, don't worry! Besides, I don't date guys my sister likes."

"YAANNNGGGGG!"

' _Ero-sennin would be having a field day right now.'_ Naruto thought with a sigh. Not surprisingly, Yang really was a piece of work, as he found out almost instantly when they had boarded the charter plane bound for Beacon. Ruby had made it a point to introduce him to her older sister, who he was slightly older by a few months and both of them being two years older than Ruby.

Deciding to calm her pouting sister, Yang began ruffling her sister's hair. "Relax, Ruby! I kid, I kid!" She said, as Ruby covered her face in embarrassment.

"You're the worst, Yang."

"Well, that's what big sister's do. We always find ways to embarrass our younger siblings." Yang said, laughing as she did before she grinned and pulled Ruby into a hug. "Oh, but I can't believe my sister's going to Beacon with me! This is the best day ever!"

"Please… stop," Ruby gasped, feeling the air being squeezed out of her lungs before Yang let go.

"But I'm so proud of you!"

"Really, sis, it was nothing." Ruby tried to play it down.

"What do you mean? It was incredible! Everyone at Beacon's going to think you're the bee's knees!"

"Yang's right, you know," Naruto piped in. "Back in my village, people would take notice of things like what you did and they'd look at you differently."

Ruby stamped her foot as she blushed, feeling meek from the praise. "But I don't want to be the 'bee's knees', okay? I don't want to be any kind of knees! I just want to a normal girl with normal knees."

Ruby's attempt to humble herself didn't deter her sister, however. "What's with you? Aren't you excited?"

"Of course I'm excited! I just… I got moved ahead two years. I don't want people to think I'm special or anything."

Seeing the downturn look her sister had, Yang tried to brighten her spirits up. Though she couldn't sympathize with her, not knowing what it's like, Yang did know that the thing Ruby was most afraid of was the great expectation and potential that many see in her, and that a lot of people, including herself and Ruby most of all, must feel that she must live up to.

"But you are special," Yang said, wrapping an assuring arm around Ruby's shoulders.

"Hey, look Ruby, on the projector. It's _that_ guy."

Naruto's finger pointed to the screen as a news report came up. What was featured was a familiar orange haired man who was partly the reason why they were now enrolled at Beacon. Despite his dislike for him, he had to thank the guy in some way, as if it weren't for him, he'd have a much harder time convincing Ozpin to let him into the Academy. Probably would have had to steal some poor sap's transcripts as well seeing as he had no records of himself in Remnant.

He looked over his shoulder. Maybe that blonde guy in the corner? He didn't look so good, after all.

" _The robbery was led by nefarious criminal Roman Torchwick, who continues to evade authorities. If you have any information on his whereabouts, please contact the Vale Police Department."_

" _In other news, this Saturday's Faunus Civil Right's protest turned dark when members of the White Fang disrupted the ceremony. The once peaceful organization has now disrupted—"_

Naruto blanked out what the rest of the report said and also ignored the appearance of Prof. Goodwitch's projection. Having his attention caught in his musing, various thoughts began swimming in his head, in particular ones that were centered on the discrimination and racism suffered by the Faunus. He was by no means an advocate for prejudice, but he also didn't support the methods the White Fang employed in order to endorse for equal rights. Moreover, it reminded him of a certain organization back home, and despite their intentions to bring about peace, their actions and motives painted them as little more than a terrorist group.

Although he would have liked to be more involved, to put a stop to the White Fang and the terror they brought, there was little Naruto could actually do. When he had learned of their activities, Naruto and the fox agreed that, along with his more destructive jutsu, dealing with the White Fang right now was not a top priority nor was it a very good idea. Not yet at least. Firstly, he was still fairly new to this world, and involving himself into things he knew little about could unleash a series of events that may prove disastrous. Furthermore, he could also potentially alert Kaguya of his presence, and right now Naruto knew that it was not the right time to deal with the machinations of the Rabbit Goddess just yet. He would be risking the lives of the people in this world. Once he had found a way home, if he ever did, or if he had a clue on what really was going, then he would direct his full attention into taking them down.

He would give credit to Akatsuki. They were far from heroes, but their ability to covertly manipulate things to their favor taught him a thing or two. Despite being effective, a show of strength was not always the best way to put an end to things.

"Hello? Are you feeling okay?"

Naruto blinked when his thoughts were greeted by a new and somewhat charming voice. He noted how pleasant it was, before he was forced to fight down the blush that threatened his cheeks when he saw how easily the voice matched the equally tall and gorgeous girl in front of him.

"Ah, yeah. I'm fine, thanks. I just zone out sometimes," he said, smiling awkwardly.

His answer seemed to amuse her, as she started to giggle, a light sound that made his heart swoon.

"I'm Pyrrha Nikos, nice to meet you," she introduced, sticking out a hand. He couldn't help but note that Pyrrha was also quite muscular.

"Naruto Uzumaki," he replied, returning the gesture as he tried his hardest not to stare. It took a great deal for him to control himself, as not only was she very attractive, but the bed of red hair on her head truly captivated him. Not one person he knew had hair like that, except maybe his mother, but to compare both of them would be unfair. Like Yang was a striking image of Tsunade, Pyrrha was that to Kushina Uzumaki, both possessing the same fiery red locks that was equal parts striking as it was beautiful.

Add to the fact that her clothes made her look like a warrior, with her top looking like a strapless, bronze cuirass, along with a black mini-skirt and bronze greaves and boots; it only seemed to make her even more attractive in his eyes.

Naruto coughed. "So, umm, what brings you to Beacon?" he asked, trying to sound as friendly as possible so as to not weird her out. There were no romantic undertones in his choice of words — he only wanted to get to know the girl seeing as she was the one who struck up a conversation with him.

Thankfully, Pyrrha didn't appear to be unnerved. "I want to be a Huntress, so I thought that applying to Beacon would be the best choice for me," she replied easily. "And you? What made you choose Beacon?"

"Funny story about that actually," Naruto laughed. "You know that guy on the screen before, Roman Torchwick? Me and my friend ran into him the other day, but he's as slippery as they say he is. Lucky for us though, Prof. Goodwitch was there on the scene and after that whole fiasco she brought us to Prof. Ozpin, who invited us to Beacon."

"Wow, that's quite a story," Pyrrha admitted.

"Yeah, to be honest, I wasn't expecting it either." Naruto grinned.

"So where is this friend of yours? Is she here with us now?"

"You know what, I actually don't know. She was just here with her sister…" Naruto confessed, turning his head around as he tried to spot a familiar shade of yellow and black. They had been standing beside him this whole time, where could they have wandered off to now?

"I think I did see them, but they walked off when you were daydreaming." Pyrrha giggled. "But it's fine, I have a feeling it wouldn't be too difficult to find them when we land. We will all be heading to the induction ceremony when we arrive at Beacon," she said, before she pursed her lips.

"I—" she stopped. Naruto noted she looked apprehensive, like she was afraid of what she was going to say next.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Do you… mind if I accompany you in the mean time?"

Naruto felt his heart skip a beat.

" **Oh, this is going to be good…"**

"Yeah… yeah! That's fine, absolutely! I'd be glad to."

* * *

Other than hanging out with Pyrrha, the ride to Beacon had been admittedly uneventful.

Not that he didn't mind though, as not only did it give Naruto some peace and quiet, he also had the benefit of having an absolute babe to keep him company. It was refreshing, to say the least, that he had the chance to kick back and relax, to take his mind off his troubles for once. Gods know he needed it anyway.

Despite his initial shyness, he quickly found that Pyrrha was actually very nice and easy to talk to. Other than her, Ruby and Yang, there weren't many other people Naruto would really consider as 'friends'. While he had been in Remnant for a couple of months now, other than the three of them there wasn't anyone else that he really had any meaningful conversation with. Not because he had been avoiding people, but his previous line of work didn't really afford the chance to chitchat with his employers. Not only that, but he also didn't tend to stick around in one place for too long.

"Hey Ruby! Yang!"

Naruto waved before he ran up to the two girls. Their already bright faces lighted up even more when they saw him.

"You done daydreaming now, Whiskers?" Yang teased. "You know, you look kinda cute when you're all serious and stuff."

"Yang! Stop trying to flirt with Naruto!" Ruby chided.

"I see your friends are very lively," Pyrrha stated, having caught up to them. "Are you Ruby?"

"Yup!" Ruby said, before she was hit by a sudden familiarity. She scrunched her face as she tried to pinpoint what it was.

"Sorry, but what was your name again? I think we've met before, I remember seeing you somewhere—"

"Ruby, that's Pyrrha Nikos. You know, the 'Invincible Girl'?" Yang cut in.

Ruby's eyes lit up in excitement. She was the girl on those cereal ads!

"Oh, wow! It's nice to meet you, Pyrrha!"

"Wait, so you're famous?" Naruto asked incredulously, turning his face to the redhead.

Pyrrha smiled but Naruto could tell there was some hesitance to it, like she was uncomfortable about something.

"I'm pretty well known, yes. I was also a four-time Mistral Regional Tournament champion. Please don't let my achievements make you think any differently about me. I'm still a student at Beacon, and I would prefer if you treat me like your fellow classmates."

Naruto could trace a hint of desperation in her voice, yet he didn't know why.

Yang being Yang though, decided that she wasn't one who could stand for an awkward situation. "Nah, don't sweat it! Ruby here joined up two years early. Pretty crazy, huh? I mean, dad and I knew she would go far, but this is something else!" Yang said, earning a bright blush from Ruby.

Her blush grew brighter when Naruto walked up and hooked an arm around her shoulder, eliciting a raised eyebrow from Yang and Pyrrha while also making Ruby stare up at him in disbelief.

"Yeah, you wouldn't think a girl as cute as Ruby can pack a punch!"

Seeing the blonde's actions as a bit strange but deciding to ignore it, Naruto and Yang's reassurance made Pyrrha feel a bit more comfortable with herself and that she wasn't the only person who stood out. Prior to her application, she had thought that because of her status, she would have a hard time making friends — 'true' friends at that.

"That is extraordinary, Ruby. Naruto didn't tell me that," Pyrrha said, with a hint of relief. Now that she knew there were other people like her, she could feel better about herself. Maybe now she could finally open up to people rather than them seeing her as some social tool.

"Y-yeah, well, it's cool, I guess…" Ruby said, before she pried herself off of Naruto and tried to cool her reddened cheeks. Really, what was he thinking?

Not being offended at the least, Naruto nonetheless felt the need to apologize as he gestured to Pyrrha. "Sorry, Ruby, my bad! But both of us are gonna head off now, I'll see you guys later at the ceremony, okay?" he said, before he turned and waved his goodbyes as the two of them walked off.

"Thanks again! It was nice seeing you!" Pyrrha called out.

Once they were out of earshot, Yang looked at her sister and noticed that she was oddly quiet.

"Hey, you alright there, Rubes?"

No response.

"Helloooo? Earth to Ruby?"

Ruby blinked. "Huh? Yang?"

"Thinking about lover boy, eh? Gotta act fast though, or else Pyrrha's gonna stake her claim. Heck, I might even put a few moves on him, too. He's not exactly bad on the eyes…" she teased, giving her sister a wink. Ruby's jaw dropped open as another blush grew on her cheeks.

"W-w-what are you— I mean he's not— I'm not— We're just— ah! Yaannggggg!"

Yang grinned, mentally giving herself a pat on the back. As always, she couldn't help herself, not when it was so easy to mess with her sister. "I'm kidding! But seriously, Ruby, while Naruto is a start, you should still keep trying to make other friends of your own."

Yang pulled her hood down as a joke. Ruby smiled—shyly— as she put it back up, knowing that her sister was trying to be nice and was only thinking the best for her.

"But why would I need friends when I have you?"

"Well, actually…" Yang replied, being quickly surrounded by a group of people. "My friends are here now. Gotta go catch up. 'Kay, c'ya, bye."

"Wait! Where are you going?" Ruby cried in a daze as her sister sped off. The amount of people that ran past her made her head spin. "Are we supposed to go to our dorms? Where are our dorms? Do we have dorms? I don't know what I'm doing…"

The world became a dizzy mess as Ruby felt herself lose track of her feet, making her fall backwards. What was she going to do now? Yang had literally left her to fend for herself, throwing her to the wolves, this time without anyone she knew. No Naruto, no stupid older sister, no anyone. She would have to look out for herself at Beacon, find her own way around things without being salty about being abandoned by her own friends.

"What are you doing?!" A snooty, shrill voice shrieked loudly when Ruby smashed into her luggage.

"Uh… sorry," Ruby mumbled.

"Sorry?" the girl pointedly mocked. "Do you have any idea of the damage you could've caused?"

A pair of pale blue eyes glared heatedly at Ruby as the girl stomped her foot in disapproval. Examining her appearance, the girl had long white hair pulled back into an off-center bun tail that was pinned with an icicle shaped tiara. As if following a winter-centered/snow-centered theme, she was dressed in a thigh-length, strapless dress with faint color gradation from white to pale blue at the hem. A small piece of black lace sat on the front of her neckline and the hem of her dress is scalloped and stitched to resemble snowflakes, with layers of white tulle under the skirt. Over her shoulders was a bell-sleeved bolero with the same color gradation as her dress from shoulder to wrist, lined in red and with a ruffled collar, while on the back, a crest representing the Schnee family could be seen. The girl also wore a small apple pendant in a silver chain and thin, rectangular silver earrings. A thin white sash was tied around her waist with a pouch attached to the back, and on her feet the girl wore a set of white boots that were lined in red on the inside with wedged heels, the boots being higher at the back than the front. A small silver decoration could be seen across the top of the foot.

Ruby also noticed that an obvious, crooked scar ran vertically down her left eye, something that Ruby guessed the girl had gained from battle. Despite that, it did little to mar her elitist beauty, and if Ruby would admit, the scar only made her appear to be more dangerous, giving the impression that she was not the type to stick around at home all day and was afraid of getting her hands dirty.

"Uhh…" Ruby muttered dumbly, feeling sheepish from angering the obviously short-tempered girl. She tried to hand one of her suitcases back to her, only to have it snatched out of her hands.

"Gimme that! This is Dust mined and purified from the Schnee Quarry."

"Uhh…"

"What are you, brain dead? Dust!" she said, pulling out a vial from the case and waving it in front of Ruby, unaware—maybe even ignorant—that some particles managed to escape and had floated into Ruby's nose.

"Fire, Water, Lightning, energy! Are you even listening to me? Is any of this sinking in? What do you have to say for yourself!?"

"I—uhhaahhh-Choooooo!"

Unable to contain the irritation any longer, Ruby let out an almighty sneeze that triggered a reaction with the Dust particles in the air, setting them off like an explosion.

Unfortunately for her, it only seemed to infuriate the girl further.

"Unbelievable!" she screeched, dusting herself off as she had been caught in the blast. "This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!"

"I'm really, really sorry!" Ruby tried to put in an apology, fidgeting her fingers to emphasize the point. Her eyes wouldn't dare look up at the yelling, angry girl as they were drawn to the ground, like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

Ruby heard a scoff. "Ugh! You complete, dolt! What are you even doing here? Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon?!"

"Well… I… um…"

"This isn't your ordinary combat school! It's not just sparing and practice, you know. We're here to fight monsters! So watch where you're going!"

Starting to get fed up with the crabby girl's pointed insults, Ruby could feel the irritation slipping in when her eyes narrowed and she bit back furiously.

"Hey, I said I was sorry, Princess!"

"It's heiress, actually."

Ruby turned and was amazed when her eyes landed on a girl who almost took her breath away.

"Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world."

"Finally, some recognition!" Weiss said haughtily, a smug grin on her face. It felt good when people recognized greatness in front of them, unlike _some_ people.

But the other girl wasn't finished. "The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners."

Ruby started giggling when she saw Weiss reaction as her face morphed from one of self-satisfaction to anger once again. Taking a look at the other girl, though, she could tell that she was serious about what she said, like she had intimate knowledge about some of the Schnee Company's shady practices.

Taking a closer look at her, the girl's long black hair and piercing amber eyes tied with her appearance as a refined beauty. A large bow sat on the top of her head, and Ruby could swear that she saw it twitch ever so slightly. Purple eye shadow done in a catseye style further accentuated her feline-like theme. Seeing her clothes, she was dressed in a black, buttoned vest with coattails and a single silver button on the front. Underneath this was a white, sleeveless, high-necked, crop undershirt that exposed some of her stomach and belly button, along with white shorts that had a zipper on the front of each leg. She also wore black, low-heeled boots and full stockings with a color gradation of black to purple at her ankles, her emblem visible on the outside of both thighs just below her shorts in white. On her left arm is a detached sleeve with a silver cuff around her bicep, while black ribbons were wrapped around both forearms. A small, loose scarf was wrapped around her neck, and Ruby had caught sight of a gray, magnetic backpack strapped onto her back that was hidden by her hair.

All in all, if one were to say that Yang was a bombshell—a jaw-dropper—this girl would be more of a sophisticated and 'out-of-your-league' type of beauty.

Weiss scowled heavily, offended at the blatant insult to her family and their reputation.

"What— How dare—! The nerve of—! Ugh!"

Finding herself tongue-tied, Weiss decided that she would not tolerate the insolence any longer. It was unbecoming of her, after all, as a lady, and she would not lower herself to these people who obviously were only here to spite her.

"I promise I'll make this up to you!" Ruby exclaimed, feeling a bit guilty as she watched Weiss storm off. Her shoulders slumped. "I guess I'm not the only one having a rough first day. So what's—"

She stopped when she found that the other pale-skinned girl had disappeared.

Ruby sighed as she sank to the floor, muttering, "Welcome to Beacon," as she began to feel sorry for herself for being left alone once again. She felt like blaming herself. If she hadn't been so socially awkward, maybe things wouldn't have turn out like this. The truth was that Ruby had always had a problem with meeting new people, mostly because she was afraid of leaving a bad impression. Now that she had the chance to try to make new friends, unlikely as it was with Weiss, in the end Ruby knew she blew it all completely.

Heck, it was so bad even that blonde guy who was throwing up on the ship was probably having better luck than her.

"Hey."

Ruby opened her eyes when she heard someone approach her. Casting her gaze up, she saw a teen with a mop of blonde hair although she could tell it wasn't Naruto.

"I'm Jaune," he introduced, extending his hand to help her up.

Feeling a bit nervous, she hesitantly took it. "Ruby," she replied back. Speak of the devil…

"Aren't you the guy that threw up on the ship?"

* * *

Naruto groaned. Maybe leaving those two behind wasn't such a good idea.

"Naruto, are you sure we're heading in the right direction?" Pyrrha began, voicing her doubts. They had been wandering around the school for little more than half an hour by now.

"Hey, they don't call me the most unpredictable ninja for nothing! We'll get there in time, don't you worry!" Naruto assured as he gave her a thumbs up.

Pyrrha giggled. "Alright, lead the way, almighty leader."

The two of them walked around for a few more minutes before they spotted a congregation of people gathered in what looked to be an auditorium.

"Guess this is it," Naruto said, almost sighing in relief as they joined in.

"Hey! Naruto! You took your sweet time!"

Naruto had a smile grow on his face when he saw Yang waltz up to him. "Oh, hey! Nice to see you again, Pyrrha."

"Hello again." Pyrrha returned with a small wave.

"So… have you guys seen Ruby?"

"Huh? Uhh… no? Wasn't she with you?" Naruto questioned.

"Yeah… about that, heheh…" Yang rubbed the back of her head. "You see— oh! Ruby! Over here! I saved you a spot!"

Naruto and Pyrrha blinked in surprise when they saw a clearly annoyed looking Ruby stomp over and promptly glared daggers at her older sister.

Pyrrha smiled. "Hello, Ruby. How has your first day been?" she asked innocently. Ruby scoffed.

"You mean since Yang and Naruto ditched me and I exploded, right?! Yeah it's going absolutely wonderful!" She rolled her eyes.

"Yikes. Meltdown already?" Yang cringed.

"And you said you… exploded?" Naruto pointed out.

Ruby frowned. "Yeah, I literally blew up a hole in front of the school! Then there was a fire… and I think there were some ice?"

"Uh, okay…?"

"You're joking right?"

"Ugh, I wish! I tripped on some crabby girl's luggage! And then she yelled at me! And then I sneezed! And then I exploded! And then she yelled again! And I felt really, really bad! And I just wanted her to stop yelling at me!"

"You!"

Ruby jumped in fright when she heard Weiss sneak up behind her. She felt a pit form in her stomach; Weiss had definitely heard all that.

"Oh no, it's happening again!"

"You're lucky we didn't get blown off the side of the cliff!"

Yang and Pyrrha looked shocked.

"Jeez, Ruby, what's up with that?" Naruto asked, essentially voicing their thoughts.

"It was an accident! It was an accident!" Ruby claimed. Heck, as far as she knew, it was actually Weiss' fault in the first place. If she hadn't been waving around that vial of Dust, she would never have sneezed and it wouldn't have ever turned out like this.

Weiss scowled. "You really want to start making things up to me?" she asked.

"Absolutely!"

Weiss reached into her pocket and pulled out a brochure.

"Read this and don't ever speak to me again."

Yang and Naruto were about to retort to defend their sister/friend respectively when instead Pyrrha beat them to it.

"I think both of you got off on the wrong foot. Maybe you two should start over and try to be friends?"

Weiss scoffed. "Yeah! And we can paint—wait, Pyrrha Nikos?"

"Hello." Pyrrha waved.

"Ahem…" coughed lightly a voice that came from a microphone. "I'll keep this brief."

All five of their attentions were then drawn to the front as a silver-haired man and a blonde woman both stepped onto the podium.

' _Professor Ozpin?'_ Naruto thought as he stared at the man. He noted the Headmaster's face had an illegible look, his gaze cast over his students as if he were studying them all at once. What unnerved him, however, was the way Ozpin had moved his eyes over directly at both him and Ruby, as if he did it intentionally. If Naruto were to be honest, he had found that a tad uncomfortable, yet also it made sense a bit. Ozpin was the reason why both he and Ruby were at Beacon; maybe he was trying to look out for them?

"You have travelled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people."

" **Remind you of someone?"**

Images of a certain mentor of his came to mind.

" _Yeah, definitely."_

"But I look amongst you and all I see is wasted energy in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

The Headmaster then walked off from the podium as he finished his speech. Naruto narrowed his eyes slightly. That was odd, he thought. While it wasn't uncommon for him to hear weird speeches and messages like that, being a ninja and all, the one Ozpin that had said in particular didn't sit well with him. It was the complete opposite to words of motivation or praise, and there was also a strange, foreboding undertone to it, like Ozpin was warning them for things to come.

It made Naruto question: what exactly was Beacon?

He shook his head. Whatever it was, it definitely rubbed him the wrong way. And he never forgot that strange presence that brought him here in the first place.

Unaware of Naruto's dilemma and seeing it right to organize the students, Glynda stepped up to the microphone for yet another announcement.

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed!" Glynda said, watching the students begin to disperse.

As the crowd of students around them made their way to the exit, Yang looked at Naruto and noticed that he had that same glassy, far-off expression on his face again.

"Yo, Whiskers? You're doing it again," she said, poking him in the cheek. Naruto blinked a few times before shaking his head.

"Damn, I gotta stop doing that." Naruto laughed.

"Did you notice the Headmaster though, he seemed kind of… off."

Ruby nodded. "Yeah, it's almost like he wasn't even there."

"Indeed." Pyrrha added her two cents.

* * *

"Man, still can't believe I'm here."

Naruto yawned as he stretched on his bed, his eyes gazing upwards to the roof. After their little introduction in the auditorium, all new first-year students had been directed to the dining hall for their accommodation for the night. Since they weren't official Beacon students yet, they therefore weren't allowed to sleep in the dorms. Instead, sleeping bags had been set out for them and we're scattered in rows throughout the room, and Naruto's group had decided to settle somewhere in the middle.

" **You wouldn't be here if it weren't for me. By now we'd still probably be wandering around in the wilderness like lost sheep because of your stupidity."**

" _Hey, you're the one who said we should keep contact with people to a minimum."_

Currently, the blonde was dressed in his pajamas—a pair of orange shorts and a black t-shirt with the Uzumaki symbol emblazoned in white on it—as he lay on his sleeping bag situated between Ruby and Pyrrha.

" **And you still can. We're only here to investigate that strange energy. Maybe even that professor since he seems to know more than he lets on. But even though were in this school, it doesn't mean you have to be friends with anyone. And you've obviously already failed in that regard."**

" _Well, it's not my fault people are attracted to my magnetic personality."_ Naruto grinned.

" **More like they're helping out a lost pup. Remember, if we somehow manage to find a way home, you'll more than likely never see them again. So don't go crying to me when you have to spill the truth to your new friends. You brought this on yourself."**

" _In other words, you care about me that you don't want me to see me get hurt?"_ Naruto winked.

" **Sh-shut up! Why you little—!"**

With his great power, Kurama then suddenly forced Naruto out of his mindscape, although not before the blonde had a caught glimpse of a blushing fox. With the image being ingrained into his mind like a nail, the blonde had found it to be way too funny. Unable to control himself any longer, and also feeling his whole body begin to tremble, Naruto's mouth burst open as a loud, uproarious laughter caused him to double over.

"Hey Naruto, why are you laughing?" Yang asked, confused, as the three girls watched Naruto hold his sides and roll around in his sleeping bag. Like the others, she was dressed in her own pajamas, which was an orange tank top with her emblem on the front in red, and black boy shorts.

"Huh? Oh… don't worry I just…. thought of a really funny joke…" he replied between breaths.

"Okay…? You know… you're weird, right?" she asked rhetorically.

"Even though you have nice boobs doesn't mean what you say's true!"

All three of them blushed a bit from the indirect, yet slightly perverted compliment, before Yang left her fellow blonde to his own devices as she crashed into her own bed and looked at her sister, who was writing in a little notebook.

"It's like a big slumber party!"

"I don't think dad would approve of all the boys, though," Ruby added. Her pajamas consisted of a black tank top with a heart-shaped Beowolf design on the chest and white long pants with pink roses as decoration. She also had a black sleeping mask with triangular red eyes sitting at the top of her head.

Staring at some of the boys, Yang smirked. "I know I do," she purred. She cringed a bit though when she saw Vomit Boy walk past. To tell the truth, Jaune wasn't exactly bad looking, all right? He just didn't fit her type.

Pyrrha, however, was staring fleetingly at Jaune with interest.

"So… what'cha doing, Rubes?" Yang asked, looking at the little book she was writing in.

"A letter to the gang back at Signal," Ruby replied. "I promised to tell them all about Beacon and how things are going."

"Aww, that's so cuuuttteee!" Ruby threw a pillow at her sister's face.

"Shut up! I didn't get to take my friends with me to school. It's weird not knowing anyone here."

"What about Naruto, Pyrrha and Jaune? They're all pretty cool, especially Naruto! _Who by the way, is actually quite handsome, eh?_ " she teased, bumping her elbow into Ruby a little. Yang whispered the last part into her sister's ear so that the other blonde wouldn't hear.

Ruby blushed. "I swear, Yang—"

"But at least you've got a few friends, right?" Yang interrupted her. "That's a 300% increase!"

"I'm pretty sure Weiss counts as a 'negative friend'."

"Ah, forget about that, she'll come around eventually. You still did pretty good, sis! I see good progress, and I barely did anything!" Ruby threw another pillow at her face.

"You still ditched me and I blew up, by the way." Ruby pouted.

Yang sighed. Yeah, she definitely messed up on that one. Their dad wouldn't be too happy either if he found out she left Ruby behind with her friends. Being the youngest in the entire school, he had asked Yang specifically to look out for her on the first day, as her big sister, since Ruby didn't know anyone. What Yang did basically amounted to abandoning her.

"Look, it's only been one day. Trust me, you've got friends all around you. You just haven't met them yet."

They then saw the flickering lights of a candle as Ruby looked to see the same black-haired girl from earlier. She was sitting in a corner by herself while reading a book.

"Who turned on the lights?" Naruto mumbled as he rubbed his sleepy eyes. Apparently, he had managed to control himself and both he and Pyrrha had fallen asleep.

"That girl…" Ruby began.

"You know her?" Yang asked.

Ruby shook her head. "Not really. She saw what happened this morning, but left before I could say anything," she explained.

Yang grinned. "Well, now's your chance! Come on, hot stuff, you're coming with us!"

"Wait, what?" Naruto murmured before he was pulled along by Yang.

"Hey, wait! What are you doing?!"

"Helllooooo!"

The black haired girl looked up from her book. Oh, it's that girl again. And who's that big chested blonde waving at her? And she brought her boyfriend?

"I believe you two may know each other!" Yang said. Naruto and Ruby glared at the back of her head.

"Umm, hi? Aren't you that girl that exploded?" the other girl asked, looking at Ruby.

"Y-yeah! My name's Ruby. What's yours?" she replied, about to offer her hand to shake before she pulled back when the other girl went back to her book.

Naruto frowned, crossing his arms. "Hey, she's talking to you, ya know? Ruby's just trying to be nice. What's you're problem, huh?" he said, defending his friend. He absolutely hated it when someone rebuked you when you literally did nothing wrong. Growing up alone without friends or family made him resent that.

The black haired girl looked up to send a heated glare at Naruto. Really, they couldn't take the hint? Sighing in frustration, and the fact these annoying people won't leave despite her making it clear that she wasn't interested, she lowered her book and decided to indulge in them so they could finally leave her alone.

"I'm Blake," she answered bluntly. Naruto noticed the way her 'bow' twitched.

"Well, Blake, I'm Yang! Ruby's older sister!" Yang introduced cheerfully. "I like your bow!"

"Thanks."

"It goes great with your… pajamas!"

"Right."

" _Am I seeing things? I swear to whatever deity these people worship that I'm speaking to Sasuke."_

Kurama snickered. **"Well, we know how much of an unhealthy obsession you had with that guy. You'll probably be the same oblivious idiot who'll fall head over heels with her,"** he teased. **"By the way, Remnant worships this deity called Oum. Or did you forget those religious fanatics who tried to kill you when you mentioned Kami?"**

" _Oh yeah… ehh. Doesn't matter anyway. I was never that religious."_

And to his relief as well. While he didn't discriminate, since he was in fact part of the same religion the majority of the Elemental Countries followed, he couldn't imagine people like those guys who wanted to build a literal wall just because you had a different religion.

Not only that, they were also planning on bombing a whole nation so they could endorse themselves as 'the dominant superpower in the world'! What was up with that?!

Anyway, that was the end of that line of thinking. Funnily enough, he couldn't actually voice these thoughts because it was such a sensitive topic here in Remnant.

" **You don't want to make the people mad."**

" _Yeah, yeah, I know."_

"Heheh, nice night, don't you think?" Yang asked awkwardly as she tried to make something out of this conversation.

Blake sighed. "Yes, it's lovely," she said dryly. "Almost as lovely as this book…"

His Sasuke-dar was going off the charts.

" _Kurama, what does the scouter say about her power level?"_

" **It's over nine thousand."**

"That I will continue to read."

The sisters kept smiling.

"As soon as you leave."

Naruto palmed his face.

"Yeah, this girl's a lost cause," Yang finished. Ruby slumped in defeat.

"What's it about?" Naruto abruptly asked.

Blake's eyes widened slightly. "Huh?" she said, dumbly.

Naruto nudged his head. "You're book. What's the title?"

"Well," Blake started. She decided to give the blonde a brief summary since he was being pushy. "It's about a man with two souls, each fighting for control over his body."

Naruto almost jumped in disbelief. Kurama saw the irony in it all.

" **That is absolutely rich."**

" _You're kidding…"_

"That actually sounds… really interesting," Naruto slowly admitted. Blake picked up the slight hitch in his voice, like he was familiar with what she said.

"Have you read this book before?" she asked, genuinely curious. Her smooth, sweet voice tickled his ears. Naruto was surprised at how pleasant it was.

"C-can't say I have, no. But I'd like to read it sometime," Naruto stated, blushing as those kinds of thoughts came to his mind. Now getting a good look at her, he had a slight feeling of nostalgia when he saw what were probably her pajamas. It consisted of a black, long-sleeved yukata with white edging over a purple undershirt, and a matching skirt. A black obi was wrapped around her waist and was tied with a black and white string. All things considered, her whole appearance reminded him of home.

He also couldn't help but note that she was also really pretty.

Wait, where the hell did that come from?

' _ **Bullseye.'**_ Kurama thought.

"I-I love reading, too." Ruby shyly said. "Yang used to read to me every night before bed. Stories of heroes and monsters… they're one of the reasons I want to be a Huntress."

Blake rolled her eyes. "Why is that? Hoping you'll live happily ever after?"

"I'm hoping we all will. When I was a girl, I wanted to be just like those heroes in the books. Someone who fought for what was right, and who protected people who couldn't protect themselves."

Naruto smiled. _'Guess I found a female mini-me.'_

"That's very ambitious for a child," Blake admitted. "Unfortunately, the real world isn't the same as a fairy tale."

"Well, that's why we're here… to make it better."

"Ohhh, I'm so proud of my baby sister!" Yang said as she wrapped her little sister in a tight hug. Ruby felt her cheeks grow hot when she saw Naruto give her a wink and a thumbs up. Stupid Yang and her stupid boobs and her stupid teasing…

"Cut it out!" Ruby cried before bonking her sister on the head. She then started to tussle and wrestle with her older sister as Yang refused to let go.

"Stop it, you two!" Naruto said as he brought his hands up. _"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_

Ruby felt herself be torn from her sister and saw the same happen with Yang by two familiar mops of blonde hair. Oh yeah, she forgot that Naruto's Semblance allowed him to clone himself. Now that she thought about it, with the number of clones she saw him make the last time, his ability was actually quite powerful.

Blake, meanwhile, looked on in shock when she realized that she and Naruto shared a very similar Semblance. It piqued her interest.

"Sorry, I… didn't catch your name before?" Blake asked, still astonished.

Naruto grinned. "My names Naruto Uzumaki, the coolest and most awesome Huntsman to ever exist!"

"Hey! That's my line, Blondie!" Yang snapped angrily as the clone holding her popped out of existence.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "What the? You're blonde too?!" he exclaimed.

"What in the world is going on over here!? Don't you realize some of us are trying to sleep?!"

An angry Weiss trudged irritably towards them before her eyes widened when she recognized Ruby.

"Oh, not you again!" both she and Yang yelled simultaneously.

"Shh! Guys, she's right! People are trying to sleep!" Ruby said in an attempt to placate things before they got out of hand again. It wouldn't do well on any of their records if they got told off on the first day by one of the professors, most notably if the professor was someone as scary as Glynda Goodwitch.

Weiss snorted. "So now you're on my side!"

"Weiss, I swear, you coming here just made things worse," Naruto said as he rubbed the bridge of his nose to calm the headache he knew was beginning to grow.

"Excuse me? What is that supposed to mean? Are you saying that this is my fault? How dare you!"

"We were perfectly fine until you showed up."

"And I was always on you're side, Weiss!" Ruby added.

"Yeah, what's your problem with my sister?! She's only trying to be nice!" Yang asked fiercely.

"I can't believe all of you! And Ruby is a hazard to my health!" Weiss replied indignantly.

Fed up with their bickering, Blake decided that she had enough.

"Lights out, kids," she said, before extinguishing the light from her candle.

* * *

The new day started off with a high. Upon awakening, each of the new students knew that today was the day to make it or break, either to succeed at Beacon and become a Huntsman, or to fail and try to find another path to their dreams. Unfortunately for them, there were no second chances, just like out in the field. With their spirits bright, they each gained confidence in themselves for whatever challenge Ozpin had prepared for them, keeping in mind the training and trials they had undergone for the chance they had now. For years, this was what their whole education had been centered on. Their teachers had painstakingly engraved to them the necessary skills from their previous Academies, and today, they were finally going to be put to use. There was nothing more to hide, nothing for them to hold back for, and each of them had no intention now of letting themselves down.

"So, Pyrrha, have you given any thought to whose team you would like to be on? I'm sure everyone must be eager to unite with such a strong, well known individual such as yourself."

They were currently in the changing rooms where all new students had stored their belongings the previous night. Despite dreading that she may have to deal with some annoying people, Weiss had awoken feeling hopeful that she could convince the famous Pyrrha Nikos to team up with her. Besides, she'd be more fitting as a teammate than that rude and idiotic blonde guy whom Pyrrha seemed to like to hang around with.

"Hmm… I'm not quite sure. I was planning on letting the chips fall where they may," Pyrrha admitted.

"Well, I was thinking maybe we could be on a team together," Weiss said.

"That sounds grand!"

"Great!"

"Hi Pyrrha, Ice Queen."

Naruto greeted the two as he stepped up to join them. Unlike his previous jumpsuit, he was now dressed in a black uniform jacket with an orange zipper and buttons on the waist and sleeves. While it couldn't be seen, underneath the jacket was a black, mesh undershirt that served as a form of light armor, while he also had visible, orange pants that had a holster of some kind on his right knee. He also wore black sandals and had a red armband that held the Uzumaki crest on his left bicep.

"Hello again, Naruto. I have no doubt you're ready for what happens next?" Pyrrha asked nicely, taking a glimpse of his outfit while Weiss snorted and snapped her head away.

Naruto pounded his chest. "Ready as I'll ever be," he assured. "Any of you two know how teams work around here? I heard rumors the professors are the ones responsible for assigning us to our teams."

Pyrrha had a pensive look on her face. "I think I've heard similar information myself, although I am not quite sure about the selection process. What I do know is that teams are comprised of four students each, so there is a good chance we may be together if we play our cards right," she said, smiling slightly at the idea of being in the same team as Naruto.

An amused grin came to his face. Four-man cells, huh? He had to force himself to hold back a laugh. First Ozpin, then the book Blake was reading, and now he found that the team system was another reflection of his past life. It was uncanny, how the more things change; the more they stay the same.

"Well, guess I know who to look out for when we're being picked." Naruto winked, which made Pyrrha giggle.

"I think you'd make a great leader, Naruto."

Off to the side, Weiss began to seethe as she felt like she was being ignored. Seriously, this was the last thing she wanted, and the whole reason why she went to talk to Pyrrha as soon as she could. She knew once the blonde arrived, Pyrrha's attention would be directed more at him rather than her. And Weiss wasn't having that!

"Seriously, please stop it. Blondie, don't you have Ruby and Yang with you already?" Weiss probed. She stared at him skeptically.

Naruto shrugged. "Pyrrha's a good friend of mine too, so of course I wouldn't mind if we're all together in one team. Why? You jealous you weren't invited to the super awesome ninja club." He wagged his eyebrows mischievously.

Weiss huffed. "Argh… you're so… infuriating!" she cried, before she turned and left for the designated area for their exams. She'd show him! Weiss swore that she'd prove to Pyrrha in the exam that it was her, Weiss Schnee, and not that stupid Naruto who was better suited to be the red-head's teammate. She'll show that dumb blonde a thing or two! And make him regret ever looking down on her!

"Don't take it too hard, Weiss! I was joking about the last bit!" Naruto called out as he watched her leave. Feeling bad for the way he'd been treating the poor girl, he could only resign to a sigh. He'd do better next time.

As the blonde wallowed in his guilt, unknown to him, the fact that he had said that she was one of his closest friends made Pyrrha's chest feel strangely warm. Despite all her talent and achievements, a true friend was—no matter how hard she worked—something that she could never gain. So to feel like this—was this what it was like, to have an actual, meaningful relationship? Not a lot of people could look past her status, and they would always see her as this unattainable goal. It made her feel lonely, and it was difficult knowing because of that; Pyrrha never really had any real connections with anyone.

Thankfully, the familiar voice of a stern blonde-haired woman caused them to break out of their stupor. "Would all first-year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation. Again, all first-year students report to Beacon Cliff immediately," came the announcement over the PA.

"Looks like it's go time." Naruto said. Pyrrha nodded her head.

"Good luck, for the both of us."

* * *

Having gathered at the edge of Beacon Cliff with the rest of the students, Naruto stood straight and ready as he silently waited for the beginning of their exam. Rather than feeling even slightly anxious, he was filled to the brim with confidence, knowing that—despite only being limited to shadow clones—his strength was still more than enough to handle several packs of Grimm. Shifting his eyes to his left then to his right, Naruto smiled when he noticed Ruby was twitching with excitement and when he saw the ear-splitting grin on Yang's face. Since arriving at Beacon, this was probably the happiest he had seen them, especially Ruby, and was glad to know that just like him, the sisters were also itching to get in on the action.

Ruby, in particular, was feeling somewhat relieved despite the heavy expectations on her shoulders. Finally, she was doing something she was familiar with, and something she knew she was good at. And at least this time, there was no having to talk with random people, no having to try to make friends with strangers, and the best of all, no angry girls yelling at her. Despite making some progress in a few of those regards, and was genuinely happy she had Pyrrha, Jaune and Naruto now as friends—outside them and Yang—she still didn't feel comfortable interacting with anyone else. And as much as she liked them, she still felt much better when it was her scythe who was doing the talking.

As directed, each of the students stood in a line atop single, square-shaped platforms that were separated along the edge of the cliff. If they were to look forward, all they would see were vast stretches of forest that seemed to go on for miles, and which no doubt held scores of Grimm within.

Ozpin coughed before taking a sip out of his mug. Good, he thought, passing his eyes for a moment over two certain teens. All the individuals he had been interested in the most were here. "For years, you have trained to become warriors. And today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest," he said, before Glynda decided to step in.

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of teams. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates… today."

"What? Aw…" Ruby groaned softly.

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well." A smirk then grew on Ozpin's face, like he enjoyed the downtrodden looks from some of the students. It almost made it seem like he took delight in Ruby's plight. "That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years."

"What?!" Ruby whined, her voice going up a pitch.

"See? I told you!" an orange-haired girl said who stood a few meters away.

Naruto had to bark back a laugh when he heard Ruby's voice break. Man was he cruel, as instead of feeling sympathy for the girl, he instead found it really funny how her demeanor had become sour really quickly. It was like watching somebody take a candy from a baby, only this time he could also see Ruby's metaphorical world literally crumble around her.

Naruto then saw her look at him pleadingly, and he could spot a small amount of tears forming in the corner of her eyes. Oh damn, now he felt bad for the girl. Now that he mentioned it, Ruby was actually kind of an introvert. Unlike him, who wanted to make as many friends as possible—annoyingly so—Ruby was the type who would rather keep to herself and to her closest people only, and even then he knew that she wasn't comfortable being around strangers.

' _Wait, how could I be so stupid…!'_ His eyes widened as he realized something. Shit, how could he not have seen it sooner? All the signs were there. How could he not know that Ruby had _genuine_ social issues, and that forcing her to adapt quickly only made it worse. He uttered a curse under his breath. If there was anyone to blame, it was both himself and Yang. They were expecting way too much from her too quickly. She may be fifteen, but this wasn't his world. She was still technically a child!

"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do _not_ hesitate to destroy everything in your path, or you will die."

Naruto heard the blonde guy beside Ruby laugh nervously. Jaune, was it? Either way, his whimpering didn't seem to bother Ozpin.

"You will be monitored and graded for the duration of your initiation," he continued, pausing for a moment before dropping the proverbial 'bomb'. "But our instructors will _not_ intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one, and return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately."

There was a certain glint in Naruto's eyes now. _'Finally,'_ he thought. _'They were about to get some action.'_ But he had something to do first before he focused on the relics.

"Are there any questions?" Ozpin finished. Despite the students' mixed reactions, the Headmaster still had that same blank look.

Jaune slowly raised his hand.

"Yeah, um, sir—"

"Good!" Ozpin said cheerfully, ignoring the clearly worried teen. "Now, take your positions."

Naruto crouched, pumping some chakra into his legs. He saw the others copy him and proceeded to take their own battle positions.

"Uh, sir? I've got, um, a question?" Jaune spoke up again as he continued to press the Headmaster.

Naruto saw Weiss shoot up in the air. Okay, so these platforms can launch people? That's pretty cool.

" _ **You can fly, idiot."**_

"So, this landing strategy thing, uh, w-what is it? You're, like, dropping us off or something?" Jaune asked hopefully.

"No." Ozpin deadpanned. He ignored how quickly the color faded from Jaune's face as the blonde realized what he was going to say next. "You will be falling."

"O-oh, I see. So, like, did you hand out parachutes for us?" Jaune had a really bad feeling about this.

"No. You will be using your own landing strategy."

"Right…"

Naruto winked at Ruby before he was promptly sent off.

* * *

"Woohoo! Yeah this is awesome!"

Naruto grinned as he felt the wind rush past his face and hair. While this certainly was fun, he knew he had a job to do and he could see that he and the others were already past the peak of their flight. The first thing on their list was to descend safely towards the ground.

' _Alright, I got this!'_ He thought as a plan came to mind. Since he can't use his more advanced abilities, he was going to have to make do with what he had.

Pulling out a kunai and some ninja wire from the holster on his knee, Naruto tied a line around the kunai tightly before he pulled his arm back and aimed for the largest tree closest to him.

' _This is gonna hurt a bit…'_ Once he was in range, combined with the force of his descent, Naruto hurled the dagger powerfully at his target and felt relief when the blade dug deep into the tree trunk. Having no other choice now, else he risks breaking a few bones, Naruto grabbed on tight to the ninja wire as he used his body's momentum to swing himself around the tree.

" _ **Clumsy, but it works."**_ Kurama admitted with a shrug.

It fell on deaf ears though as Naruto focused on the task at hand. Unlike Tenten, he wasn't an expert with ninja tools, but he knew enough about them to be able to use them effectively. For example, as a testament to their origin and craftsmanship, ninja wire was renowned for being durable and strong enough to carry the weight of a single person. It was why he always carried a spool on his person, for situations like this where its versatility could be put to good use, and during times where he couldn't use his clones or jutsu. Not only was it simpler, but it was also most likely a better alternative for what he wanted to achieve.

Eventually, Naruto slowed down enough that he was able to stick himself onto the thick bark with his chakra, choosing instead to run out the last vestiges of momentum his body had left.

"Alright, now where's Ruby?" Naruto muttered as he hopped back down to the ground. That went smoother than he thought, not that it mattered to anyone.

Examining his surroundings, Naruto looked around and saw nothing but lush greenery. He found himself genuinely comfortable here, while quietly noting the large amounts of natural energy in this place and how closely it resembled home. From his training as a Sage, Naruto knew the longer he was in tune with nature, the more powerful and peaceful he felt. It made him thankful that despite all that's changed in his life, these things had stayed the same.

Deciding that sparing a moment to himself wouldn't hurt anyone, Naruto stayed still as he began to mix the natural energy with his own chakra. Like taking a breath of fresh air, it felt good. He could feel the natural energy flow through him, strengthening him, gifting him with an inner peace most spend years to achieve. But this was just a taste of the true power of a Sage. Continuing to reach out to it, Naruto could feel his senses stretch out as nature filled its avatar with all the benefits it can give.

"Okay, that's enough. Gotta get back to Ruby," Naruto said, breaking the connection he had before speeding through the forest.

Ruby, meanwhile, was also facing a similar predicament. But rather than just looking for her sister, she was also trying to keep an eye out for Naruto, unaware that he was also looking for _her_. Whether it was either the blonde or her sister, Ruby didn't mind as long as she didn't get paired up with anyone else. She wouldn't know what she would do if she got paired up with someone like Weiss.

"Yaaanngggg!" Ruby cried. _'Ugh, this is bad, this is really bad!'_

She listed the possible individuals in her head that she wouldn't mind being paired with. Weiss was definitely a no. Blake… maybe? Jaune was pretty cool, but she thought he wouldn't do much good in a fight. Pyrrha was fine, and she was nice!

She shook her head. Okay, as long as it wasn't Weiss, then she'd be fine, right?

Ruby was forced to slide to a halt when another girl came into view.

' _You have got to be kidding me…'_ Ruby mentally groaned when her eyes met the last person she wanted to see. Oh Oum, why did it have to be the Ice Queen?

For a moment the two girls stared at each other, before Weiss turned on her heels and walked away.

"Wait! Where are you going?!" Ruby called out, trying to catch the attention of the aforementioned Ice Queen. She kicked the ground dejectedly when Weiss ignored her. "We're supposed to be teammates…"

A few seconds later, Weiss came back and pulled Ruby by the hood.

"By no means does this make us friends," Weiss said, refusing to even look at her as she dragged her away. While she wasn't exactly her favorite person in the world, Weiss didn't doubt that Ruby was a far better option than that creepy blonde guy who probably had a thing for her.

Ruby couldn't believe it though. "You came back!" She didn't even care that she was being lugged like a sack of potatoes, the fact that Weiss was willing to partner up with her already made her day.

What could possibly be better than that?

Unknown to Ruby, the reason why Weiss was so willing was because the alternative wasn't exactly much better.

"Just great…" Jaune mumbled. As his luck would have it, he had his jacket embedded into the bark of a tree by a spear that came out of nowhere. And to make things even better, Weiss showed up and left him when he was literally struggling to get himself free. But to be fair, he did look kind of stupid…

"Jaune?"

He was slightly surprised to hear someone call him. His eyes searched for it, with Jaune eventually peering down to find Pyrrha looking up at him worriedly as he hung in mid-air.

Thank Oum she came with the save.

He also absently noted that she had a nice rack.

"Have you… found a partner yet?" Pyrrha asked.

"No…" Jaune moaned in return. Of course not, Weiss would deny ever meeting him in the forest if anyone brought it up.

Pyrrha scratched her cheek. "Well… I'm still free if you don't mind…" she said coyly as she smiled at him.

"O-oh! Really?" His tone was incredulous. Unfortunately, he failed to see why she was so willing to help him. A normal person would. But not seeing the deeper meaning of something wasn't exactly new to him. "So, um, could you help me get down first?"

Inwardly, Pyrrha couldn't be happier.

"Of course."

* * *

"Damn, where the hell is she?!"

Naruto gritted his teeth as he continued to look around, trying to find some kind of hint for his scythe-wielding friend. During his run, he had come across a few packs of Ursa, which didn't provide him too much trouble as in essence they were just simple, mindless beasts. Apparently they grew stronger the older they were, but he hadn't faced any of the sort yet.

What did surprise him, however, that he found shortly after his first ever battle with the Grimm was that they contained a familiar, yet strange type of energy. It was something that he could never quite put his finger on. What he could say about it was that it was something impure, and that it felt corrupted, filled with anger and hate. It reminded him of something he would expect from someone who murdered innocent people, a presence so foul and tainted that sucked the life around it.

It reminded him of what Kurama had said a few weeks after his arrival on Remnant:

 _ **("These creatures, even to me they are a mystery. Unfortunately, it is impossible to study them since their corpses disappear upon death. All we know is that they are filled with such malice that there mere presence taints the land. The only comparison is that they are very vaguely similar to the J**_ _ **ū**_ _ **bi.")**_

That was the most information he could get about them. Otherwise, he was just in the dark about their origins as the rest of Remnant. Not that it mattered, and that didn't prevent him from destroying them when he could. To him, they were just mindless killers with an unquenchable thirst for bloodshed. As long as they kept murdering innocent people, then he'd be damned to allow them to continue without restraint.

"Ruby? Ruby!"

Naruto's eyes widened when he was alerted by Weiss' voice.

' _Guess she's paired up with Weiss. Oh boy…'_ Naruto winced as he turned and moved towards the sound. Both were each other's worst enemies. Knowing that both Ruby and Weiss would be put on the same team _if_ they pass, it would be a miracle if Beacon remained standing by the end of it. If only this world's deity was merciful enough that their future teammates wouldn't kill themselves from the headache. He'd sure hate to be them.

Finding himself in a clearing, Naruto saw Weiss be surrounded by a pack of Beowolves that was led by an even larger and more powerful Beowolf.

"Naruto?!" Weiss exclaimed, her eyes shifting to the blonde when he suddenly appeared behind her. How did he… she never imagined he would be this fast. She didn't even hear him coming, not to mention his speed must've been out of this world if he could cover the distance between them this quickly.

She shook her head, directing her focus back to the Grimm. Whatever he did, Semblance or not it was irrelevant right now.

"Where's Ruby?" Naruto basically demanded, pulling out four shuriken and placing one between each finger on his right hand while his left held a kunai. His eyes narrowed when he saw the larger Grimm stalk closer to them.

"I don't know! But I'm not waiting to find out," Weiss replied, before she brought her rapier up. She thought back to her training, and assumed the correct posture and poise that set her up to attack.

' _Head up, shoulders back, right foot forward, not that forward, slow your breathing, wait for the right time to strike…'_

"And… Now!"

Almost on command, Weiss lunged with her sword while Naruto flicked his wrist and sent the throwing stars towards the center of the larger Beowolf's face.

But to his utter surprise, a certain black-haired teen then showed up out of nowhere and got in the way.

"Uhh! Gotcha— whoa!"

Ruby ducked as she avoided the projectiles from skewering the back of her head. It was in the nick of time, too, as she had barely seen them in the corner of her eyes. Where did they come from, anyway? And couldn't they have warned her beforehand? Thankfully, her training from her Uncle Qrow taught her the importance of being aware of your surroundings. It helped for times like these, especially. Otherwise, she'd be as dead as a log if it weren't for her Uncle beating it into her head.

"What the… Ruby?!" Naruto couldn't believe his eyes. If she had been more careless, he could've seriously hurt the girl!

"Naruto? What was that for?!" Ruby asked angrily as she sent him a glare.

"Watch where you're going, idiot! And where the hell have you been?"

Not giving them another second to regroup, the Beowolf howled as it pounced upon the three.

"Dodge!" Naruto cried as he leapt out of the way.

The other two jumped in the opposite direction allowing the large Beowolf to get in between them.

" _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_!" Naruto said before a small army of clones appeared behind him. "Alright guys, let's show 'em who's boss!"

The Grimm stepped back when they saw how quickly a multitude of the blonde's copies appeared and outnumbered them three to one. Ruby and Weiss, in the meantime, couldn't believe their eyes.

Shaking her head, Ruby tugged on Weiss' sleeve. "Come on, Weiss! We've gotta give it our all, too!" Ruby said as she prepared Crescent Rose and changed it to its rifle form.

"Let 'em have it!"

The army of clones charged as they each ganged up on a Grimm. Sniper rounds were shot from Ruby while Weiss sent Dust-based ranged attacks that pulverized the outnumbered Beowolves. Despite their resilience and single-minded goal to kill these children, their numbers quickly dwindled against the blonde onslaught, with the original not even appearing to tire at all even after using such a taxing ability.

Naruto sidestepped a Beowolf's claw before pounding it in the face with his fist. The force of the punch skidded the Grimm back a few feet, dazing it and causing it to remain helpless as Naruto's kunai slit its throat.

After a few minutes of fighting, the Beowolves numbers faded until one remained, the largest and possibly oldest of the pack.

Ruby was about to charge head-on into the enraged Grimm, until Naruto put a hand out to stop her.

"No, he's mine," he said, his tone leaving no room for argument. Ruby relented and took a step back as Naruto cracked his knuckles.

"Let's dance." Naruto broke into a sprint and pulled out another kunai from his pouch. Now both of his hands held one each.

The Beowolf snarled as its blonde nemesis came to meet it without fear. Angered at the fact that Naruto was underestimating it, the Beowolf crouched low onto its fours before it pushed off hard against the ground.

The remaining clones followed the original as several of them tried to impale the wolf Grimm with their kunai. As they got closer, surprise would be an understatement when they saw the Beowolf's speed, catching them off-guard a bit as they were quickly dispelled when it swiped its large claws at them.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, noticing that this guy wasn't like the others, and it was definitely more powerful than the other lesser Grimm his clones had no trouble fighting. This must've been one of those older Grimm they kept talking about, the ones that, through years of experience, had developed enough intelligence that it could predict and anticipate his strategies. It surprised him, blurring what he previously thought as mindless beasts. He hadn't encountered these types of Grimm before.

Either way, he was going to take this a bit more seriously this time.

The Grimm roared as it dived after another set of Naruto's clones, unaware whom the original as it resorted to just taking out every single one of them. Slightly annoyed that this thing wasn't dead already, the clones managed to move out of the way in time and followed up with a jump as they impaled their kunai into the Beowolf's back.

"That should do it," Naruto remarked, twisting his kunai to emphasize the point. A long, pained howl emanated from the Beowolf's throat before it slumped forward, dead as it evaporated into black mist.

Naruto sheathed his weapon when he felt the job was done and dispelled the rest of his clones. When the field cleared, he turned to look at Ruby who was gawking at him in disbelief, while Weiss had her arms crossed and was stamping her foot impatiently with an accusing look. The Ice Queen definitely wanted some answers.

"That… was… awesome!" Ruby cried as she ran up to the blonde teen, staring up at him with stars in her eyes. The way his clones manhandled those Grimm, and how easily he took out that big one, it was amazing, spectacular, and all sorts of cool! Where did he learn to fight like that? And what was with his crazy Semblance?! How can he multiply himself so much that they become a literal one-man army? There must be drawbacks to it, right?

"Okay… Ruby? Ruby, stop…" Naruto said as Ruby continued to bombard him with questions he couldn't even make out since she was speaking so rapidly. It was like she was talking in a whole new other language.

"Come on, Naruto! Tell me, I won't tell anyone, I promise? We're friends so you can trust me, please? Please, Naruto? Pretty pleeaaasseee?" Ruby whined, cupping her hands to beg him to tell her. Naruto had to pry her off of him when Weiss sent him a death glare.

"Ugh, stop being such a child, Ruby!" Weiss groaned as she stepped closer to him. She pointed her finger at him accusingly. "You! What kind of Semblance is that? There must be some drawbacks if you can create that many clones of yourself!"

Naruto had to sigh when Weiss didn't leave any room to argue. "My 'Semblance' allows me to create as many copes of myself as long as I have the energy for it. Since it depends on my stamina, I've trained my whole life to conserve as much energy as possible whenever I use my techniques. Other than that, I don't experience anything other than some fatigue, which rarely happens nowadays," he explained, frowning slightly as he returned the look she was sending him.

Thankfully, he didn't have to explain himself further as Weiss seemed satisfied with his answer, seeing as she leveled her glare before her same, haughty expression reappeared on her face.

"Come on, Ruby. We still have to find those relics," Weiss said as she walked back into the woods. Seeing her partner was leaving, Ruby uttered Naruto a goodbye before running after Weiss.

Left by himself again, Naruto felt relief when he saw Weiss was willing to somewhat cooperate with Ruby, even though they had come off to a rocky start. She may be rough around the edges, but Naruto knew that deep down Weiss was a genuinely good person who, while she tried to hide it, held her own insecurities and who also did care about what other people think. Someone just had to help her not get too worked up over it. Although it may take time, Naruto had enough faith in Ruby that she would eventually break Weiss out of her shell and let her open up more. Besides, being so uptight all the time was bad for your health, and it'd be a shame to waste such a pretty face.

Knowing that his job was complete, Naruto looked up and noted that there was still plenty of daylight left. He'd probably been here for about an hour or two, and looking for Ruby had distracted him from another crucial part of this exam.

He forgot to find a partner.

"Now where can I find a nice, quirky girl around here?"

* * *

Author's Note: 9 August 2017

Soooooo...

I guess I'm back?

Anyway, I finished this chapter WAY back in April but I tried to hold myself from uploading till I finished Chapter 5. Unfortunately, though, due to work commitments, university, university-work placement, gaming (Overwatch and DS III), spending time for myself just chillin' with friends and stuff, fanfiction had been the last thing on my mind and I never did get around to working on it till now. To be completely honest as well, chapter 5 is still under development, and as of yet I don't have an estimated time that it would be finished. That being said, this story has always been under my radar and nagging me within my thoughts, and every day this little voice in my head tells me: "Come on, get back to it! Finish what you started! Have a go!"

I've always been aware of the feedback and reading you guys' messages as well. Yeah, this story potentially has some plot holes that, most likely, I have carelessly over-looked. When I feel more comfortable with this and the further along we go, I will definitely go back and revise it. Right now, I'm aiming first to get this story straight. In fact, that last tidbit in chapter 2 was something I now (sorta?) think shouldn't have been revealed yet. Feel like it reveals a bit too much, but can't do anything about it now, eh?

Don't you just love it when ideas suddenly swarm into your head without much organisation?

Despite my faults (not to mention that not everyone's perfect as well), I feel like whatever I have in mind in the future is something that you, the readers, would find exciting and I hope that whatever I've produced now is satisfactory enough. I'm not aiming to make this the greatest story ever told or what not, just something that's good to pass the time and enjoyable to read as a small project of mine. I may not be the savviest person like some other great people on this website, but I do enjoy doing what I'm doing right now despite that.

So, moving on, I haven't really gone over this chapter much since I felt it was time to finally put it out. Hopefully, I can start pumping out the next chapter soon since I have about a week's break till university starts again. If there's any other questions or mistakes that you guys notice, feel free to let me know so I can rectify when I'm next online.

Till then, hope to see you guys in the next chapter!

Peace.


End file.
